Grasse
Grasse
Grassa (Occitan) | |
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Subprefecture and commune | |
Coordinates: 43°40′00″N 6°55′00″E / 43.6667°N 6.9167°E | |
Country | France |
Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur |
Department | Alpes-Maritimes |
Arrondissement | Grasse |
Canton | Grasse-1 and 2 |
Intercommunality | CA Pays de Grasse |
Government | |
• Mayor (2020–2026) | Jérôme Viaud[1] (LR) |
Area 1 | 44.44 km2 (17.16 sq mi) |
Population (2021)[2] | 48,323 |
• Density | 1,100/km2 (2,800/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
INSEE/Postal code | 06069 /06130 |
Elevation | 80–1,061 m (262–3,481 ft) (avg. 333 m or 1,093 ft) |
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. |
Grasse (French pronunciation: had a population of 50,396.
Considered the world's capital of perfume,[3][4] Grasse obtained two flowers in the Concours des villes et villages fleuris[5] and was made Ville d'Art et d'Histoire (City of Art and History).[6]
Festivals
There is an annual Fête du Jasmin or La Jasminade, at the beginning of August. The first festival was on August 3–4, 1946. Decorated floats drive through the town, with young women in skimpy costumes on board, throwing flowers into the crowd. Garlands of jasmine decorate the town centre, and the fire department fills a fire truck with jasmine-infused water to spray on the crowds.[7][8] There are fireworks, free parties, folk music groups and street performers. There is also an annual international exhibition of roses ("Expo Rose") held in May each year.[9]
Transport
Perfume
Grasse has had a prospering
The trade in
The countryside around the city began to grow fields of flowers, offering new scents from the city. In 1614, the king recognized the new corporation of "glovers perfumers". In the middle of the eighteenth century, the perfumery was experiencing a very important development. Leading companies dating from this period includes the oldest French perfumerie, and third oldest parfumerie in Europe, Galimard established in 1747. Introduction of new production methods turned perfume making into a real industry that could adapt to new market demands.[10]
In the nineteenth century, the raw materials began to be imported from abroad. During the twentieth century the creation of synthetic products brought the democratization & affordability of perfumes and their spin-offs; (
Historical activity
In the
Modern industry
A network of sixty companies employs 3,500 people in the city and surrounding area. Additionally about 10,000 residents of Grasse are indirectly employed by the perfume industry. Almost half of the
This represents almost half of the production of French perfumes and aromas and around 7-8% of total global activity. However, during the 1960s and 1970s large international groups gradually bought up local family factories (Chiris, Givaudan-Roure and Lautier, for example). Soon after their production was often relocated overseas. Just 30 years ago most companies were focused on the production of raw materials. However an overwhelming majority of the modern fragrances contain synthetic chemicals in part or in whole. Grasse perfume companies have therefore adapted by turning to aromatic synthesis and especially to food flavourings and successfully ended a long stagnation. The Grasse perfume industry cannot compete against large chemical multinationals, but it benefits greatly from the advantage of its knowledge of raw materials, facilities, contractors, etc. In addition, major brands such as Dior and Chanel have their own plantations of roses and jasmine in the vicinity of Grasse.[citation needed]
Perfumeries
Three perfumeries, Fragonard, Molinard and Galimard opened their doors to the public and offer free tours that explain the processes of producing a perfume. It is possible to create one's own perfume, eau de perfume or eau de toilette and participate in all stages of manufacture from picking flowers to bottling.
- Galimard Perfumery, established in 1747 by Jean de Galimard, provided the Royal Court with ointments and perfumes. It is the third oldest perfume company in the world after Farina gegenüber and Floris of London and was revived after the war by Gaston de Fontmichel and Joseph Roux.
- Molinard was established in 1849 and their perfume bottles were made of Baccarat crystal and Lalique glass. Clients can create their own personalised perfume during the Tarinology fragrance course workshop.
- The Fragonard Perfumery was established in 1926 in one of the oldest factories in the city. Its museum Villa Musée Fragonard displays rare objects that explain the history of perfumery, covering 5,000 years.
- International Perfume Museum. Opened in 1989, the museum traces the evolution of techniques during the 5,000 year history of perfumery and the large contribution of the Grasse area to perfume making. It was renovated and expanded (doubling in size) between 2007 and 2008.[citation needed]
- Perfume Art Creation, perfumed art-producing company combining authentic fragrances from Grasse, and an art gallery based in Zollikerberg, Switzerland. Its fragrance-infused artworks and paintings are the copyright concept of Perfume Art Creation, which allows the viewer visually to explore the artwork, to smell it, allowing for holistic stimulation of the senses. Working and creating commonly with the artists, the paintings are infused with the preferred collector's perfume and scent, and his or her individual or corporate fragrance is introduced into the art.[11]
Population
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Source: EHESS[12] and INSEE (1968-2017)[13] |
Religion
The town is home to
Education
The town is home to the Lycée Amiral-de-Grasse and since 2019 one of two seats of the higher education engineering college ECAM-EPMI.
Sport
RC Grasse is the local football club, whereas RO Grasse the local rugby union club.
In popular culture
The town is the setting in the final chapters of the novel Perfume by Patrick Süskind. It was featured in the film based on the novel Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006).
Main sights
Three perfume factories offer daily tours and demonstrations, which draw in many of the region's visitors. In addition to the perfumeries, Grasse's other main attraction is the Cathedral, dedicated to Notre Dame du Puy and founded in the 11th century. In the interior, are three works by
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Grasse – Parfumerie
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Parfumerie Molinard
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Napoleon Memorial
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Fleur de jasmin
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Blessed Sacrament chapel
Other sights include:
- Saracen Tower, standing at 30m.
- Monumental gate of the Hôtel de ville
- International Museum of Perfume
- Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Provence
- Church of Plascassier, built in 1644
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Hotel Court de Fontmichel
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Palais des congrès
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Boulevard du Jeu de Ballon
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Place aux Aires
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Side street in Old Town
Notable people
Grasse was the birthplace of:
- Louis Bellaud (1543–1588), also known as Bellaud de la Bellaudière, poet
- Claude-Marie Courmes (1770–1865), trader, shipowner and politician. Mayor of Grasse, deputy for Var and General Councilor of Var Canton of Grasse-Nord.
- Mélanie Bernier (born 1985), actress
- Adam Bessa, (born 1992), actor[15]
- Israel Basketball Premier League
- Jacques Cavallier (born 1962), perfumer[16]
- Albert Charpin (1842–1924), painter
- Olivier Cresp (born 1955), perfumer[17]
- Jean-Claude Ellena (born 1947), perfumer
- Alexandre-Évariste Fragonard (1780–1850), painter and sculptor
- Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732–1806), painter[18]
- Jean Claude Gandur (born 1949), businessman[19]
- Gazan de la Peyrière (1765–1845), general during the Napoleonic Wars
- Valentine Goby (born 1974), writer
- Marcel Journet (1868–1933), operatic baritone
- Vincent Koziello (born 1995), footballer
- Eugénie Le Sommer (born 1989), woman footballer
- Pierre-Louis Lions (born 1956), mathematician
- Gilles Marini (born 1976), actor
- Michèle Mouton (born 1951), rally driver
- Charles Pasqua (1927–2015), businessman and politician
- Thomas Pinault (born 1981), footballer
- Théo Pourchaire (born 2003), racing driver
Grasse was the death place of:
- Dirk Bogarde (1921–1999), actor, lived in Grasse
- Ivan Bunin (1870–1953), Russian writer, Nobel Prize in Literature, 1933; lived in Grasse
- Christian Calmes (1913–1995), Luxembourgian civil servant, lawyer and historian
- François Joseph Paul de Grasse (1723–1788) admiral, commanded of the French fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake, which led directly to the Siege of Yorktown.[20]
- David Douglas Duncan (1916–2018), American photojournalist
- Wittelsbach
- Lolo Ferrari (1963–2000), dancer, actress and singer with breast implants
- Édith Piaf (1915–1963), singer
- Frederic Prokosch (1906–1989), American writer
- Yvonne Rozille (1900–1985), film actress
- Eugène Sémérie (1832–1884), positivist activist
Other notables associated with Grasse:
- Gérard Philipe (1922–1959), actor, brought up in Grasse
- Alice Charlotte von Rothschild (1847–1922), patron of the arts; art collection was donated to the town of Grasse
- H. G. Wells (1866–1946), British writer
Twin towns – sister cities
Grasse is
- Ingolstadt, Germany, since 1963
- Carrara, Italy, since 1995
- Vila Real, Portugal, since 1975
- Murcia, Spain, since 1990
- Marblehead, Massachusetts, USA, since 1986
- Opole, Poland, since 1964
- Kazanlak, Bulgaria
- Pardes Hanna-Karkur, Israel
See also
- Route Napoléon
- Ancient Diocese of Grasse
- Communes of the Alpes-Maritimes department
- Famille Courmes
References
- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 6 June 2023.
- ^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ Page Bienvenue sur le site de la ville de Grasse (in French)
- ^ Collins, Ross (January 1995). "The Scents of a City". www.ndsu.edu. Fargo-Moorhead Forum. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
- ^ Palmarès du Concours des villes et villages fleuris dans les Alpes-Maritimes Archived 2009-02-24 at the Wayback Machine (in French)
- ^ Ministère de la Culture. "Fiche de Grasse appartenant aux villes du réseau ville d'art et d'histoire" (in French). Retrieved 3 June 2007.
- ^ Grasse Office De Tourism, Jasmine Festival Archived 2015-01-04 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Yes I Cannes, Jasmine Festival 2013 Announcement.
- ^ Grasse Office De Tourism, Expo Rose Announcement Archived 2015-01-04 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Creamer, Colleen (8 August 2017). "A Perfume Devotee in the Land of French Fragrance". Retrieved 3 April 2018 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ LE COLONETE. Perfume Art Creation Gallery
- ^ Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Grasse, EHESS (in French).
- ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
- ^ Fodor's Travel Guide, Grasse, France Review, accessdate=2015-03-24.
- ^ Duponchel, Marilou (4 November 2022). "La trajectoire tourmentée d'Adam Bessa, l'acteur lumineux de "Harka"". Les Inrockuptibles (in French).
- ^ "Jacques Cavallier". perfumer.s-perfume.com. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
- ^ "Olivier Cresp :: Perfumers :: Now Smell This". www.nstperfume.com. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ Konody, Paul George (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 10 (11th ed.). pp. 772–773.
- ^ "Jean Claude Gandur". Fg-art.org. Archived from the original on 6 November 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 369. .
- ^ "Jumelages". ville-grasse.fr (in French). Grasse. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
External links
- Media related to Grasse at Wikimedia Commons
- Grasse travel guide from Wikivoyage
- Grasse city council website (in French)
- Coolidge, William Augustus Brevoort (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). p. 369.