Over the past year-and-a-half, IRL partying felt like a fantasy consigned to a far-off future, didn’t it? Well, last night that future landed with a bang, when visionary fashion house Paco Rabanne landed in the heart of London to toast the launch of Phantom, the bold new addition to its iconic family of fragrances.
Given that we’re talking about the world’s first ‘connected’ scent — it’s been created with the input of neuroscientists and AIs to actively the mood of anyone who gives it a whiff, and its adorable robo-bottle features an NFC chip, which, when scanned brings the darling android to life — this was never going to be just any old party, but rather a fully-fledged multidimensional experience.
On arrival at the Spitalfields location, a coterie of the city’s chicest denizens — from Love Island winners Millie Court & Liam Reardon to Dalston doyenne Miss Jason, the ethereal songstress Tsunaina to rapper Headie One — indulged in coupes of fizz and took in specially-commissioned installations by six creatives broadening the horizons of digital art. Responding to Phantom’s future-forward aroma, Nicholas Delap, Stephy Fung, Oliver Hunter Pohorille, Aoife Tol, Harry Vincent; and Scarlett Yang each presented works that harnessed the future-gazing spirit of the house, echoing the scent’s rich profile through multichannel video works, animation, 3D rendering, and more.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a perfume party without, well, perfume, and on the top floor of the space, a lucent cube hosted a scented cloud mist, with everyone from actor Jaime Winstone to Made in Chelsea alum Ollie Proudlock seen bathing in the vanilla, lavender and lemon-tinged mist.
It was then down into the Paco Galaxy for an all-out space rave. Cocktails echoing Phantom’s notes were poured, and everyone from OG rubber doll Pandemonia and pioneering director Stephen Isaac-Wilson, producer and DJ du jour Hasani and rising star Loshh Aje took to the dancefloor into the wee hours of the night.
