The name is not unknown, in fact in recent years, posthumously, the name of Josephine Baker has been highlighted within French society and as such also globally. Her induction into The Pantheon Paris, the secular temple of France, in 2021, 50 years after her death in 1975, was at long last a recognition of a woman whose life was a kaleidoscopic melding of glamour, talent, public adoration, activism, antiracial protest, family life, curating the patrimonies of her adopted country, France and devotion to both family and adopted country. She was a woman who seized the moment and transformed her life, adapting to the passages of time, the changes in mode and fashions, time of war and peace, raising her tribe of 12 adopted children from all over the world, the Rainbow Family, artist, performer, spy and humanitarian.

I am fortunate enough to live just across the valley, here in Perigord Noir, to the Chateau des Milandes, the once chateau home of Josephine Baker, now an historic monument dedicated to preserving her legacy and life. Josephine rented the Chateau from 1937 onwards as a holiday home and spent as much time as she could there. During WWII she even ran an arm of the French Resistance from here, hiding and helping British RAF pilots Poles and Belgians and then bought it 10 years later, in 1947 with her husband, Jo Bouillon. They were even married in the Chateau Chapel.

I have a wonderful view from my home of this majestic building which dates back in origin to 1489 as a year of construction. Josephine, who at that time had become a very successful dancer and singer in Paris made many improvements to this ancient building, adding the touches of modernity that make life in an historic monument comfortable. Her time at Chateau des Milandes ended in 1969.

She also hosted numerous friends and celebrities of the time, developing the park-like grounds of the Chateau, the village beyond and the Josephine Baker Music Hall and Park at the foot of the Chateau featuring the famous ‘J’ shaped swimming pool, a nod to her and Jo’s initials.

I have regularly visited the Chateau des Milandes as a visitor with family and friends, as it is now open to the public, and spent time there for private events. The current owner, Angelique de Labarre (Madame Angelique de Saint-Exupery), is someone I have the privilege to know personally. Thanks to her efforts and dedication the Chateau now houses a complete exhibit of the life of Josephine Baker, its rooms are filled with personal effects, items, furniture and collections of artifacts, documents, photographs and her iconic gowns and costumes including the unique ‘banana skirt’ she wore for her ‘Dance Sauvage’ in 1926, created by the costume department of Folies Bergere. There are also within the walls of Chateau des Milandes hints and traces of the influence of perfume in her life and her love for it.

It is in fact well documented that Josephine had a great love for the fashion of each era she lived through as evidenced by the collection of designer and haute couture garments in the collection of the Chateau. Her passion for some of the great classics of Perfumery is also well known. In my conversation with Angelique de Labarre a few days ago, she shared with me some anecdotes from some of Josephine’s children. Akio Bouillon Baker, her eldest son, who lived locally until his death last year, recalled her always wearing perfume, it was a constant memory and Marianne Bouillion Baker recounted the moment where she had been caught by Josephine emptying her mother’s bottle of Chanel No 5 down the sink in the Arpege bathroom.

So much of the details of Josephine's multi-layered life has been documented but here I wish to focus on her preferred perfumes, ones that enhanced her glamour and were some of the most iconic perfumes created in the early to mid-20th century by some of the most renowned Master Perfumers.

There are a few recorded personal preferences of Josephine, some are even recorded in the building at the Chateau itself. She admired the perfumes so much, most famous, of course is the bathroom that she commissioned designed and decorated entirely in the Art Deco black Murano tiles and real gold embellishment’s, mirroring the design and aesthetic of Lanvin’s Arpege, released in 1927 it was her signature and personal favourite for most of her life. The defining image on the bottle created by Paul Iribe of Jeanne Lanvin and her daughter in tender embrace also resonated with Josephine Baker and her great love for children.

Arpege released in 1927 was created by perfumers Paul Vacher and Andre Fraysse, it had started life as a tribute from Jeanne Lanvin to her daughter and muse, Marie-Blanche and is seen as one of the most defining floral bouquets making use of pioneering aldehydes which had just become available at that time, and the recent innovations of reconstructed notes of Lilac and Lily of the Valley. It possesses a heart of flowers that is ever evolving, flourishing on skin. A complex floral anchored in sensual woods, resins and vanilla. It is a classic, sophisticated aldehydic floral. The quality of its matière premiere is exceptional.

Louise de Vilmoron famously quoted:

‘Arpège, a musical perfume, leaves a trail of warm, fresh notes. An extraordinary combination, it smells of flowers, fruits, fur and leaves.

It whispers a happy song.

Refined luxury, a miraculous display of elegance, a living fragrance which enhances a Woman’s beauty.

The fairies recommend it: Arpege at your very fingertips’.

Jean Patou – Joy, created in 1930. Josephine Baker was a high fashion client of the designer Jean Patou who dressed her frequently in both his couture gowns and sportier ensembles, she also wore his legendary, indulgent floral perfume, Joy. A perfume that was lush, extravagant and required thousands of both Jasmine and Rose de Mai flowers in its formulation, originally created by perfumer Henri Almeras, it was promoted as ‘the most expensive perfume in the world’, indeed the high quality of its raw materials made it so. When perfumer Jean Kerleo took over as in house perfumer in 1967, he was also in charge of sourcing the components, to ensure the highest quality was maintained, year after year of production. In fact, the formula has very few base notes, relying instead on the rich complexity of its floral opulence.

A perfume that was crafted especially as a gift and homage for Josephine Baker by perfumer Jacques Guerlain in 1933 was ‘Sous le Vent’, now unfortunately discontinued; it was inspired by Josephine’s exoticism. Jacques Guerlain was so captivated by her performances at the Theatre des Champs-Elysee. He wanted to capture her spirit, he envisioned a perfume that evoked tropical winds and lush landscapes, picturing the Caribbean’s Leeward Islands blending tropical freedom with European sophistications. It is seen as one of the best examples of a green, aromatic chypre in high perfumery and has a cult status, being highly sought after by collectors. It was a shift away from the heavier, floral, amber fragrances common at the time and was surprisingly dry and green, a true aromatic, utilising Bergamot, tarragon, lavender, green galbanum, oakmoss, vetiver and patchouli.

Josephine’s love of highly artistic perfumery continued into the 1940’s and 1950’s. Always one to be up to date in terms of fashion and beauty, in the 1950’s she became a close client and a muse for Christian Dior who dressed her for major performances and public appearances. During this era, her preferred Dior perfumes were;

Miss Dior created in 1947, by perfumer Paul Vacher (who by then was head of his own company – Le Galion), this was Christian Dior’s first perfume, a classic green chypre with crisp top notes, a floral heart and a woody base of oakmoss, patchouli and amber, a complex and often contradictory array of raw materials playing on the greenness of galbanum, sage and aldehydes with an intense floral bouquet at its heart, resinous and woody with a touch of leather at its base, again this perfume so inspired Josephine that she commissioned a second opulent bathroom at Chateau des Milandes, crafted in pink marble designed to mirror the refined, soft aesthetic of her Miss Dior bottle.

Diorama, launched in 1949, was Christian Dior’s second fragrance, following on from the success of Miss Dior, it was created by Master Perfumer Edmond Roudnitska, an opulent, haute couture expression of the post war era. Diorama was a rich and sensual fruity – spicy chypre, much less green with notes of peach, plum and melon, with spices of cinnamon and nutmeg and a classic chypre base. Christian Dior wanted to create a scent that was theatrical and elegant and this perfume was a perfect fit for the dramatic stage presence and warmth of personality of Josephine Baker; she wore it often for her performances.

Diorissimo, created in 1956, again by Edmond Roudnitska, was another preferred perfume for Josephine during that era. Her important connection to the House of Dior deepened and she was to become one of its ambassadors, often wearing custom made styles designed especially for her on her international tours and appearances. She was considered one of their elite-clienteles, and as a part of this close relationship the fresher, lighter formula of Diorissimo was used by her during the day contrasting with the heavier Diorama for the evening. Diorissimo was born out of Edmond Roudnitska’s desire to simplify the formula of perfume in a market he saw as being saturated with multi florals. The Lily of the Valley was to become synonymous with Diorissimo, it had, of course been used before but never highlighted in this way and utilising a jasmine in the base notes.

In homage and acknowledgement of the special relationship between Josephine Baker and the House of Dior, they designed their SS 2023 collection, Josephine Baker and the Roaring 20’s, to honor her.

Chanel – Chanel No. 5 – launched in 1921 was not a signature perfume of Josephine’s, yes, she possessed it as we have seen in the anecdote from her daughter, but it did not feature a lot, instead she chose as her aldehydic scent, Arpege by Lanvin. The Chanel perfume ‘Bois des Iles’ by Ernest Beaux was a rich, woody, spicy perfume inspired by the 1920’s Parisian craze for jazz, Art Deco and African culture, a movement for which Josephine Baker was the poster girl.

We have seen from her choice of perfume aligned with the love of fashion which can be viewed in the Chateau des Milandes, that she was a woman of her time, fashionable, chic and modern challenging a lot of the contradictions of the time and moving gracefully with her characteristic dynamism through each decade of her life.

There are a number of perfume bottles on display within her once home of Chateau des Milandes and plans for a more dedicated display in the future. I wish to thank Angelique de Labarre for her guided visit and personal glimpses into some of the items and documents that may make up any future display on the perfumed life of Josephine Baker. Angelique continues to enlarge the collection of artifacts belonging to Josephine and the Chateau is now a marvellous dedication to this exceptional woman thanks to her incredible efforts.

Chateau des Milandes – Castelnaud La Chapelle - https://www.milandes.com/

The Pantheon - https://www.paris-pantheon.fr/