Aesop Marion

In nature, resurrection is no mere fantasy. Australians are accustomed to these landscapes where, amidst the ashes, where everything seems lifeless, brightly coloured flowers bloom. Botanists call this phenomenon the ‘Phoenix factor’: after a bushfire, the seeds of charred plants feed on the ashes, and the very thing that killed them offers them a second life.

Similarly, it is possible to build architecture from cinders. The 4,432 bricks covering Marion’s store are made from a blend of flyash and hemp. These materials are sourced locally by Natural Bricks, artisans based in Adelaide, renowned for producing durable rectangular bricks that are sun-dried rather than fired. The integrity of their shape dictated to our in-house architects the store’s overall layout and orthogonal design, down to the very last detail. If one looks closely at the angles of the façade, they will notice that they are tailored to the dimensions of the brickwork. The same goes for the shelving units along the left wall–each strictly measured in line with the bricks–which hold the full range of our formulations. Three rectangular, brutalist volumes are aligned in the centre of the shop. Clad in laminate, they are equipped with sinks, intended for consultations, and a Fragrance Library, where the full range of Eaux de Parfum can be explored.

Our store at Marion draws on a colour palette of ashen tones. The hue of sage—a plant whose smoke is believed to have purifying properties in many cultures—is complemented by the charcoal grey of the laminate. The colours are reflected in subtle touches of stainless steel, scattered across the façade, on the frame of a mirror, and on the profiles of a light fixture that once illuminated another of our stores—they too, in their own way, are rising from the dust, just like the many flowers of Adelaide.