Orientalism in Perfume is a Drag
Yuhua Hamasaki showed up to her first day of Rupaul’s Drag Race in an elaborate geisha outfit she constructed herself. Later that day, she managed to do a cartwheel while wearing it.
She’s silly and can actually sew, which are both highly valued talents on Drag Race, so I didn’t expect to see her eliminated from the competition so early this season. Alas, playing air guitar while lip syncing to Celebrity Skin by Hole is a look that no one can really pull off.
Yuhua Hamasaki is Chinese, but she chose a Japanese last name for her drag persona, who rolls proudly and merrily along with a pan-East-Asian identity.
There are plenty of perfumes that claim to take inspiration from East Asian cultures, but they tend to go in one or the other direction:
- Minimalist and quiet, like Avon Haiku.
- Huge and spicy, like YSL Opium, a classic from the 80s that could not have a worse name.
Neither of these directions is a great fit for Yuhua Hamasaki, whose runway designs were elegant, but not quiet, and inspired by East Asian cultures, but not in a way that would make Edward Said feel sad.
To be clear, I don’t think that perfume can, in and of itself, be reductive of complex cultures. But perfume marketing and conceptual design can definitely do that. It was a challenge to find a perfume that did justice to both Yuhua Hamasaki as a drag queen and the pride she takes in her culture.
Look at this this gorgeous outfit that Yuhua made for the show, but which we never got to see her wear:
All of this brings me to recommend:
Chinatown (Bond No. 9)
Chinatown the perfume smells like a traditional Chinese wooden lacquered cabinet, if each layer of sheer paint were made of gardenia. On top of the cabinet, there is a large bowl of peaches for good cheer. For sass, the perfume is laced with cardamom, which lends a slightly medicinal tinge to what could otherwise be too sweet.
Overall, the perfume is well put together, friendly, and a bit dangerous.
If there’s a Bond No. 9 boutique or Nordstrom near you, ask nicely and they will give you a sample of Chinatown for free. Otherwise, you can find a sample vial on FragranceNet.
Note: Despite being a Chinese-American perfume enthusiast, I cannot name a single perfume brand based in China, and my research turned up short. If you have any recommendations, let me know in the comments!
This is third in a series of perfume matchups for the queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10. I’m going episode-by-episode, and if you want to know when new stories come out, you can follow me here on Medium, or on on twitter at lucyasun
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Lucy Sun is a fragrance enthusiast who lives in New York City.
