In 2009 this blogger had the opportunity to attend to one of the lectures of the trend guru Li Edelkoort. Needless to say that her presentation was not only unforgettable, but thought me a new way of understanding the world around me, and since that day I continue to follow her predictions. I try to understand how the fragrance industry manages to follow and incorporate these trends in their fragrance developments. In 2010 I posted an article about a trend that caught my attention: birds (click HERE if you wish to read it).
Li had already made a parallel between human and chickens in her magazine Bloom (issue number 19).
Photos' credit: Li Edelkoort
I saw all the pictures representing a trend of farming, farming products and animals...roosters...
In her own words:
" autumn/winter
2011-2012
Now that we have recovered from the worst and are experiencing a new fluidity of movement, the economy and therefore culture will take us to a higher plane for a new and even better perspective. In a positive and optimistic mood, fashion and design will take flight and give us wings on the road to new colors, more texture and exalting creativity.
The world of birds is therefore our source of inspiration, with their interesting behavior patterns previewing the society of man. Living in flocks they inspire us to congregate and share, building nests and inviting us to rekindle the love and care we want to give our family and friends; transgressing borders they install in us a new sense of freedom from convention and control; gathering food they initiate the idea of local produce and seasonal harvest.
The collecting of twigs and debris to weave birds’ nests will inspire us to rekindle a keen interest in artistic and crafted weaving, with designer yarns spun from opposing and complementary matter like mohair with silk ribbons and leather and lurex.
The rituals of courting and mating by the male specimens drive us towards a more erotic experience of the night and a more exotic take on rituals, using color, dance and sound as essential attributes".
But how can we translate that trend to a perfume? Farm birds (game) such as chickens are not exactly fragrant, unless cooked or grilled!!
photo credit: JPG
It takes one very smart man such as Jean Paul Gaultier to understand & translate a trend when thinking of launching a masculine fragrance.
After the successful LE MALE, JPG is already creating a huge buzz in the fragrance community with his cock fragrance. LOL. Ok, I wrote that on purpose, but cock, or cockerel, and rooster are the names of the male chicken ;-)
Now, Jean Paul Gaultier knows Li Edelkoort because he is a fashion designer. He knows what the guru says sells. I read in another fragrance blog about JPG's KOKORICO, and that he is known for his easy sense of risk taking... I am sorry, but in the fashion industry there is no such a thing. Risks are not taken, it is all predicted by people like Li Edelkoort!!! The fragrance of a famous fashion designer follows the same rules as his collections. There are no risks, only research.
So let's analyze KOKORICO:
The name of the fragrance is the French onomatopoeia for the cry of a rooster, using the letter K instead of C. Cocoricó in Portuguese; Cock-a-doodle-do in English. Why cock? IMO because cock also refers to the virile male member (penis). Jean Paul Gaultier is the enfant terrrible of French Fashion industry, likes to shock (but always in a creative funny way). Some mentioned that he has pushed the flirting act to a more extreme path...hummmm... in a TOM FORD way of doing things? I don't think so. JPG is much more intelligent than TF. He knows how to deliver a message without becoming vulgar or explicit. He implies the use of the cock symbol. He will never actually show cock or what it represents.
Roosters are very virile and they are usually in charge of many chicks, the hens (roosters are polygamous and they proclaim their territory by crowing). They are intelligent and proud. Contrary to myths, they don't learn how to fight with humans, they do it instinctively.
photo credit: JPG
So JPG chose the rooster to represent what he is now considering the modern masculine behavior that he wishes to sell: a virile, sexy man. He will present you gorgeous model Jon Kortajarena wearing black leather and feathers. He will deliver to you a fragrance that has an olfactive crowing. A flamboyant feathery dramatic fragrance.
The flacon: the front side has the shape of a human head, from the back side you will find JPG signature shape of a male torso. The colors are dramatic - black and red (like the rooster's colors).
In this video you will watch the fragrance bottle production, and understand a bit more about the JPG style of doing things:
The advertising campaign - the film: You will see the rooster played by Jon K in a sort of Elvis- Flamenco dance, doing what Li describes as "The rituals of courting and mating by the male specimens drive us towards a more erotic experience of the night and a more exotic take on rituals, using color, dance and sound as essential attributes", with 02 lady hens & aka drummers, dressed in mini skirts, loosing a few feathers (in the battle for love, a field of feathers - translated from a Spanish proverb - "a batalla de amor, campo de plumas")
Now, what about the juice?
Does it really matter what comes inside this cock head? IMO it does not matter at all. The idea was planted in our minds and it is what we have been desiring to have - Li went out there checking that for JPG. We want cock ladies and gentlemen.
A bit of patchouli, iris, vetiver, cocoa, cedar and fig leafs...explosive, gourmet, tribal, aphrodisiac...
KOKORICO - the liquid cock crowing on your skin...
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