The Story of Diptyque
The story of Diptyque chronicles the creative adventure of three
friends inspired by nature, travel and art, who founded a Maison
of artists.
1961: the The kindling of an imagination
Three artists, three free spirits, one vision. At the turn of the Sixties, at a time of tremendous excitement and optimism marked by a strong desire for modernity, Desmond Knox-Leet, Christiane Montadre-Gautrot and Yves Coueslant invented a new kind of space; a space made in their image; a celebration of the senses; a tribute to daring, where their creativity shone alongside objects sourced from around the world. Bound by a sense of beauty, a love of nature, and an insatiable curiosity, the three friends brought Diptyque to vivid life.
Part artist's studio, part cabinet of curiosities, Diptyque opened in Paris’s 5th arrondissement, a bohemian haven where heritage merged with modernity. At 34 boulevard Saint-Germain, the three friends became ""purveyors of trifles"". Over the course of their encounters and travels, they unearthed antiques, decorated and refashioned exotic and everyday objects, and filled the shelves of this concept store ahead of its time.
Diptyque’s founders: A trio of artists and friends
Paris, 1949. The story begins. Desmond is a painter, a graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts, the Paris school of fine arts. Christiane is an interior architect, trained at the French national school of decorative arts, the Arts décoratifs. One is an accomplished artist; the other has a passion for craftsmanship. Each is the mirror image of the other. Their inevitable friendship is shaped by memories of Desmond’s summers in the South of France, and Christiane’s childhood garden on the fringes of Fontainebleau. With taste and discernment, they work together to create designs for upholstery fabrics sold at Liberty and Sanderson in London.
A decade later, by a twist of fate, they cross paths with Yves Coueslant. This globe-trotting son of a banker raised in Indochina (present-day Vietnam) establishes an immediate rapport with Christiane and Desmond, himself heir to a British noble family. Together, they make an inseparable trio of friends. And from this encounter springs a creative ambition – the dream of founding their own Maison.
"We were artists. We were not driven by ambition, but rather by passion,
imagination, creativity and the desire to do something with true integrity"
CHRISTIANE MONTADRE-GAUTROT
THE SIGNATURES OF A NEW ART OF LIVING
Five years later, Diptyque continued its olfactory explorations when it released its frst eau de
toilette. The inspiration for L'Eau came from a 16th-century recipe containing cinnamon, rose.
clove, geranium and sandalwood - a nod to traditional clove-studded English orange 'pomanders’
Like no other genre, L'Eau is an olfactory work of art. The frst in a collection of eaux de toilette and
fragrances, it promised boundless wanderings through distant lands: journeys into the intimate
workings of a real or imagined memory.
The fragrant line: An artistic adventure
A sensory encounter between nose, eye and hand, Diptyque’s creations are the fruit of a singular creative philosophy. The Maison’s founders may have drawn inspiration from a fragrance to create an image, or an image to create a fragrance, but were always guided by the light of creative freedom. Perfumers and illustrators work hand in hand to this day. Each of Diptyque’s fragrances is a collective work that celebrates an encounter between the Maison’s imagination and their respective sensibilities.
Diptyque’s inspirations
NATURE
Diptyque is rooted in a shared passion for nature, authenticity and truth. Wild, lively and colourful, nature guided the founding trio to create their first scents. A nature teeming with essences and materials, it recalls the landscapes prized by the three friends for their restorative qualities.
TRAVEL
Travel also broadened their horizons. Their wanderings led them from Europe to Asia, and from Venice to Moscow, and they followed in the footsteps of the ancient Greeks on dreamlike journeys. Their passion for travel and fascination for distant lands furnished them with memories they would later translate into fragrances and drawings. These recollections are the Maison’s primary source of inspiration.
GRAPHIC ARTS
Drawing on their shared passion for the graphic arts, the trio also created a playful and subtle new language. Graphic design was now a medium for expression; a gateway to the world of Diptyque. The Maison’s founders sought to strike an artful balance between images and words, black and white and colour, motif and figurative drawing. An iconic visual code comprising the oval, the fragrance burner and a host of dancing letters, like riddles to decipher, became part of the essence of the Maison’s identity.
An invitation on a voyage through
Diptyque's worlds
FRAGRANCES
At Diptyque, perfume is an invitation to embark on a journey.
one on which, from the very frst notes, our imagination and
senses awaken. Far from the beaten track, perfumes and
perfume gestures beckon you to follow in their sillage.
discovering unexpected fragrances and compositions.
- Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.