- Ashley Eden Kessler Perfumer:
Ashley Eden Kessler is an American perfumer celebrated for her creative and meticulous approach to fragrance design. Growing up in Hancock Park, Los Angeles, she was instilled with the values of helping people and creating beautiful, useful objects from a young age. Her educational journey led her to study architecture and sculpture at Sarah Lawrence, and she initially embarked on a career in film, drawn to fields that demanded both creativity and practicality.
A serendipitous turn of events, an unexpected injury and subsequent recovery, redirected her path towards perfumery. She began as an apprentice to a respected niche perfumer and, in 2010, made the significant move to Grasse, France, to pursue formal perfumery education. At the prestigious Grasse Institute of Perfumery, she distinguished herself, winning a coveted award with her final project.
After her studies, Kessler worked as a perfumer's assistant at Drom Fragrances International and Mane et Fils in New York City before returning to her hometown of Los Angeles to open Studio Sentir, a private label fragrance lab. Her compositions are characterized by refinement, complexity, and boldness, as she expertly brings clients' ideas to life.
Kessler's work extends beyond her own creations. In 2012, she connected with Saskia Wilson-Brown, the founding director of the Institute for Art and Olfaction in Los Angeles. As a non-profit, the iao aims to make perfumery accessible to the public and foster multi-disciplinary arts collaborations with an olfactory element. Kessler joined as the perfumer in residence and played a pivotal role in teaching and developing an educational curriculum. She designs and instructs classes on accords, material evaluation, fragrance families, and the sensory intersection of mindfulness and perfumery practice.
Through her work, Kessler has developed a philosophy that views perfumery as a dynamic art and a reflective practice. By sharing this approach with her students, she realizes her childhood aspiration of providing them with the tools to confront fears, counter tendencies, and observe themselves in the pursuit of the unknown. Studio Sentir, located in a historic cottage behind her childhood home, serves as a space where she continues to draw inspiration from the play and magic of her youth. Ashley Eden Kessler's contributions to the world of perfumery, both as a creator and an educator, have firmly established her as a notable figure in the industry, and her influence is sure to endure for years to come.
