YSL pour Homme

From the very beginning, Yves Saint Laurent imposed his style, his ideas. He caused a stir with the “Collection 40,” which featured the retro style of women during the Second World War. He also caused a stir with numerous perfumes, such as Rive Gauche or Opium. He also caused a stir when he posed nude for his perfume Pour Homme, a fragrance the designer himself wore with elegance.

The scandal of the Pour Homme advertisement by Yves Saint Laurent

Created in 1968, Pour Homme was launched in 1971, at the same time as Rive Gauche, which encouraged women to free themselves from their constraints. To create the advertisement for Pour Homme, the young designer did not hesitate to shock, even scandalize, the bourgeoisie by posing nude in front of the lens of Jeanloup Sieff. The slogan was: This is my Eau de Toilette, now it can be yours…. This unprecedented advertisement obviously caused a real scandal. Nevertheless, Yves Saint Laurent revealed himself in a simple, intimate way, laying bare not only his body but also his soul. It was as if the young designer were explaining: I only have myself to offer you. Beyond his personality and sensitivity, Pour Homme depicts the assertive character of the designer and of all men. Pour Homme is the fragrance of an offbeat sincerity, of a quest for self and happiness.

The elegance of the scented notes of Pour Homme

It was the perfumer Raymond Chaillan who was chosen by the house YSL to create this first perfume (released the same year as Rive Gauche). Pour Homme is defined as a citrus-aromatic fragrance. The result is delicate and elegant, in the image of the Parisian designer. Pour Homme opens with an intense freshness, that of citrus notes such as lemon and bergamot combined with the aromatic notes of lavender, petitgrain and verbena. The heart of Pour Homme moves toward even stronger aromatic notes, combining thyme, rosemary, clary sage and marjoram. These are nevertheless enhanced with the spicy touch of pink pepper. Finally, the base is particularly virile thanks to the presence of vetiver, sandalwood, oakmoss and patchouli. As for the bottle, it has been redesigned and now takes the form of the typical bottle from the house YSL's “Collection des Parfums Classiques.” The bottle takes the shape of a clean-lined glass cube. It is also wrapped with a black label, Yves Saint Laurent's signature color, displaying the name of the perfume. The whole offers an ultra-elegant result.

Pour Homme is the first perfume by Yves Saint Laurent, on par with Rive Gauche, which was released the same year. If the name is not provocative (unlike Opium), Pour Homme nevertheless caused a scandal because YSL posed nude to present it… An intimate fragrance, Pour Homme upends all the codes of masculine identity.