The spirit of a decade
The Second World War cut off access to many raw materials and paralysed international trade. Perfumers worked with what they had, and some still delivered major works. In 1944, Edmond Roudnitska created Femme for Rochas, a fruity plum chypre, while Germaine Cellier composed Bandit for Robert Piguet, a green, provocative leather. At the Liberation, Paris wanted its prestige back. In 1947, Christian Dior presented his first collection, the New Look, and launched Miss Dior, a green chypre. In 1948, Nina Ricci unveiled L'Air du Temps, a spicy carnation floral in a Lalique bottle topped with doves. That same year, Robert Piguet's Fracas defined the archetypal tuberose. The decade thus established two leading perfumers, Roudnitska and Cellier, and the lasting alliance between haute couture and fragrance that still shapes the industry.