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“Perfume: expressive code”, born in 2024 and promoted by LiberoStile Associazione Culturale, is an international competition and an exhibition event dedicated to artistic perfumery. Premio Aromata 2025, the second edition will take place from 15 to 17 May 2025 at Palazzo Velli, a medieval residence in the heart of the Trastevere district.
The event has the dual aim of enhancing the material and immaterial artistic heritage of master perfumers and at the same time spreading the culture of niche perfume not only to the specialized public, but also and above all to non-experts, who appreciate the fascinating world rich in history and skills of artistic perfumery. The initiative was born to create a Roman event in the sector, where the creativity and sensitivity of master perfumers is enhanced and appreciated on a par with that of a famous composer, a great painter or a refined jeweler. “In short, in perfumery the artist refines the raw aroma of nature, facets it and mounts it like a jeweler makes a gem brighter and enhances it.” (Joris-Karl Huysmans, Against Nature). With the term Aromata the Romans indicated the spices whose aromas were used to make perfumed oils and ointments such as Nardinum composed, among the many ingredients, of amomum, myrrh, unripe olive oil, but above all of nard, whose warehouses, the Horrea piperataria in the Roman Forum, have recently been restored and opened to the public. At the time, the perfumers were united in the corporation Collegium aromatarium and their workshops were grouped near the Velabrum, in particular in the Vicus thuriarius and in the Vicus unguentarius. The Romans perfumed everything: walls, mosaics, statues, clothes, wines and food, theater stages; according to Suetonius, in the Domus Aurea
“The ceiling of the dining rooms was made of movable ivory tablets, through openings from which flowers and perfumes flowed”. Rome immediately appeared to us as the ideal place to host the competition. The evocative power of a perfume is eternal, as this city and its consolidated artistic vocation make it the ideal place to promote the culture of niche perfumery.
Premio Aromata 2025 Theme
Also for the second edition, the theme is once again “The invisible between the lines” which highlights the link between the two forms of expression: writing and perfumery. Not only perfume in literature, but also the reverse process: literature that becomes fragrance. We are interested in the possibility that the invisible – told or imagined – that dwell between the lines of a literary extract, comes to life thanks to the creativity of the maître parfumeur. Participants of Premio Aromata 2025 are then asked to present their own creation (not necessarily recent) inspired by the perfumes described in the chosen literary text, or a fragrance that embodies the emotion aroused by the charm of a character in a story, by the atmosphere of the settings in a novel, by the text of a poem, by the mark left on the heart and by the intimate change that reading those lines has made possible. The master perfumers will translate the sensations and states of mind aroused by reading those words into olfactory notes. Their literary choices will constitute the stages of a sensory experience: an olfactory journey, a tour of the world, a journey through time.
Premio Aromata 2025 will be held at the Pallazo Velli
Premio Aromata 2025 Venue
Palazzo Velli stands in the heart of the Trastevere district, on an ancient area where there are cisterns and old granary deposits in the underground. Built at the end of the 14th century by the Velli, one of the oldest and noblest Roman families, it is now home to a fascinating multifunctional space of about 400 square meters. Its large rooms, with walls steeped in history and expertly restored, today welcome visitors to a busy calendar of events and art exhibitions: an ideal space therefore for the enhancement of the artistic creations of master perfumers.
Premio Aromata 2025 The Jury
The jury is made up of industry professionals, including Giuseppe Squillace, one of the most famous perfume historians on the international scene and professor of Greek History at the University of Calabria; Edoardo Bertozzini, fourth-generation owner of the historic Roman perfumery of the same name; Angela Ciampagna, independent nose and founder of the Label brand; Nicoleta Tomsa, senior editor of ÇaFleureBon; Simone Lo Bue and Mariaceleste Lombardo noses of Moellhausen; Fabio Bernardi, nose of Farotti Essenze; Alessandro Nicolì Cotugno, writer, copywriter, fragrance evaluator and communication expert; Jana Menard owner of the Californian perfumery Fragrance Vault located ins South Lake Tahoe, California, Nir Guy, co-founder and owner of the fragrance boutique Perfumology in Philadelphia; Renata Gorreri writer of olfactory culture; Markus Villani, content creator fragrances and beauty.
Premio Aromata 2025 Eligibility
Niche and artistic perfumery brands, master perfumers and fragrance creators of all ages and nationalities are invited to participate in the Premio Aromata 2025 international competition. A new feature of this edition is the creation of a section for creators of home fragrances.
The prize for the master perfumer whose perfume is the winner consists of a two-night stay at the GRANDONO farmhouse, Scansano, www.grandono.it. It is an elegant and exclusive oasis in the Tuscan Maremma where essential oils and rose and lavender hydrolates are distilled.
Premio Aromata 2025 Catalogue
At the end of the event, a catalog will be edited with images of the perfumes and the selected literary passages that inspired the creations; a copy will be sent to each participant.
Persolaise Award
New for Premio Aromata 2025 is the additional prize curated by Dariush Alavi, and the perfumer who created it will be rewarded with an interview on his blog or YouTube channel Persolaise.com.
Premio Aromata 2025 Program
The exhibition will take place from 15 to 17 May 2025, the vernissage will be on Thursday 15th while the award ceremony is scheduled for the afternoon of Saturday 17th.
Premio Aromata 2025 2025 Deadlines
March 31st is the deadline for sending the registration documentation and the release. The payment of the participation fee must be paid by April 5th, 2025.The IBAN for the payment of the fee will be communicated by email later.
Premio Aromata 2025 Participation Fee
Access to the selection is free, only after having received confirmation of acceptance of their application, the participant will pay the fee of 450.00 Euros (Amounts excluded from the scope of VAT pursuant to art. 4, c. 4 , Presidential Decree 633/72). The fee dedicated to recent graduates of perfumery academies and schools is Euro 350.00. The fee includes: curation of the event, web communication via social media and paper, set-up and dismantling, graphics, a copy of the catalogue, vernissage, prize for the winner, three-day exhibition at Palazzo Velli.
For more on the Premio Aromata awards please visit their site
Via Press release and my own synopsis-Michelyn Camen, Editor-in Chief
all art via Premio Aromata
Please read my interview with Laura Amato, the co-founder of Premio Aromata and the first edition winners here
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