Francesca Bianchi at Indigo Perfumery  

"In my laboratory in Amsterdam I create my perfumes, which are then fully prepared by hand in Italy. The passionate search for outstanding raw materials is crucial to bring my ideas to life.

It’s a never-ending activity, which each time follows the flow of a new, specific inspiration.

I love to use ingredients of natural origin for their richness and complexity, but I also like the possibilities offered by synthetic materials.

As in many other things, nature and technology easily coexist and enhance each other.

Alchemic transformation       

Sometimes I mention Alchemy, which has always been mostly a cultural interest for me. It’s not a direct source of inspiration but more a sort of hidden pattern in the process of perfume making.

The magic of Alchemy is the transformation into a new status or dimension (either material or spiritual) through a particular process.

Talking about perfumery, the materials I add in my experiments end up creating something new, they evolve into something new and unpredictable, which simply didn’t exist before.

Like an Alchemic transformation, which is not theoretical, you HAVE to go through that very process to achieve a new dimension. In other words, if you limit yourself to the theoretical aspect or the formula (or just reading a book without living your life), and you don’t physically go through a process, or an experience, you will NEVER achieve the transformation.

There’s something mystical and carnal at the same time in this truth, and I feel so satisfied in doing something which put together such opposite elements and allow me to witness the creation of something which ‘was not’ before."