With Orchidee Imperiale Black, Guerlain pushes the limits of high-end cosmetics to offer the skin a promise of unchanging youth.
This skincare line represents the culmination of more than fifteen years of research at the Orchidarium®, the Maison's research laboratory, which harnesses the unique power of a rare and precious orchid: the Black Orchid. Today, Guerlain unveils a reinvented version of its iconic cream, designed to enhance the skin's natural defenses and reveal an incomparable youthful glow.
The Black Orchid: Symbol of resilience and longevity
At the heart of this quest for eternal youth, the Black Orchid is a rare orchid from the Peruvian Andes, cultivated exclusively for Guerlain by passionate horticulturist Karol Villena. In its natural sanctuary near Moyobamba, nicknamed the "City of Orchids," this fascinating plant, capable of defying the laws of time, is meticulously cultivated with total respect for biodiversity. Each flower and leaf is harvested by hand to preserve its purity and power.
The Black Orchid is a marvel of adaptation: it blooms for only two weeks a year and bears both male and female flowers, a rare characteristic that allows it to adapt to its environment. Its exceptional survival abilities, combined with extreme vigilance in the face of natural hazards, make this orchid a true talisman of longevity.
L’Orchidarium®: At the forefront of research in anti-aging cosmetics
Since 2008, Guerlain's Orchidarium® has dedicated its research to the mysteries of the Black Orchid's longevity. With teams of scientists and researchers, this center has enabled major advances in anti-aging cosmetics, with the exclusive Blackimmune™ technology. This innovative process strengthens the skin's natural defense mechanisms by acting on three levels, creating a true shield against the signs of aging to preserve cellular youth.
Guerlain research has shown that only 20% of skin aging is biological. Orchidée Impériale Black targets the remaining 80%, resulting from external aggressions, by stimulating the skin's self-defense capabilities.
An Exceptional Setting by Ora Ïto : Art at the Heart of the Black Imperial Orchid
For this exclusive Art Edition, Guerlain has entrusted its iconic Orchidée Impériale Black cream jar to the bold French designer Ora Ïto. Renowned for his visionary approach, Ora Ïto reinvents the bottle, drawing inspiration from the Black Orchid and its symbolism of longevity and perfection. The result? A case with fine, raised lines, draped in a sophisticated matte black, evoking infinity and timelessness.
The designer has taken the iconic black ebony pot and reinterpreted its unique curves, tackling the materials with finesse for a bold and contemporary redesign. Every detail is designed to embody the evanescence of the orchid's curves, the depth of its furrows, and the movement that seems imbued in the material. More than a year of work was required to create this work of art, whose perfect symmetry creates a dialogue between design and nature in a surprising balance.
Defying the laws of gravity, the designer creates a weightless pot, where sculpted lines skillfully play with reflections, creating subtle effects of material and light. These lines, synonymous with infinity, are for Ora Ïto the very expression of longevity, a quality dear to the house of Guerlain.
Sobriety and complexity, simplicity and technical precision come together in this work, reinventing Guerlain's heritage to breathe new life into it, resolutely looking to the future. With this creation, Ora Ïto signs a new story for Guerlain: that of a house rooted in its heritage, yet always in search of modernity and innovation.
The Orchidée Impériale Black range thus embodies the pinnacle of the alliance between art and anti-aging care: exceptional beauty elixirs that restore the skin's radiance and youthfulness, combining the best of nature and science, in the service of eternal beauty.
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