Dominique Ropion is a daring perfectionist, a true inventor. The risks he takes are invariably accompanied by a relentless pursuit of exact olfactory balance and flawless composition. His perfumes are like great architectural feats: in the same way that a bridge, whose seemingly miraculous suspension of weight is in fact a harnessing of counteracting forces, Dominique Ropion often balances excessive doses of powerful ingredients with meticulously measured, subtler accords, until the composition holds up on its own. A good perfume, he likes to say, must always be at once excessive and harmonious.

His training began at Roure Bertrand Dupont in Grasse, continued in Paris and culminated in a partnership with Jean-Louis Sieuzac, whose astounding, encyclopedic knowledge of perfumery brought him fame as one of perfumery’s greatest technicians. Frédéric Malle has worked with him for over 25 years and seen him through many extended periods of rigorous experimentation. Together, they defy perfumery conventions to create modern masterpieces.