Heritage
A house, in its own words
The story of Mutis Nueva Granada begins with Hanssen David Diaz Reyes, a Colombian visual artist who turned his fascination with the country’s botanical archives into a perfume line. Reportedly launched in 2020, the brand positioned itself as the first Colombian artistic perfumery, a claim echoed by several niche‑fragrance publications. In 2021 the house unveiled a cluster of debut fragrances—Amaranto, Delta, Agua de Indias, Bahia, Selva Negra, El Dorado—each named after a regional landmark or plant. That same year the collection was presented at the Cannes fragrance pavilion, marking Mutis’s first exposure to an international audience. The following season the brand appeared at Pitti Fragranze in Florence, where curators highlighted its dedication to the Real Expedición Botánica as a conceptual framework. 2022 saw the release of Kintu, a scent that references the indigenous Kogi people and their sacred mountains. 2023 the line expanded with Maracaibo, a tribute to the historic port city that once linked the New World to Europe. In 2025 two new compositions—Merengue and Bolero—joined the catalogue, reinforcing the house’s rhythm of yearly additions that reflect Colombia’s cultural diversity. Throughout its growth, Mutis has maintained a small‑batch production model, sourcing raw materials directly from Colombian farms and collaborating with local botanists to verify the authenticity of each botanical note. The brand’s evolution mirrors a broader resurgence of interest in South American terroir within niche perfumery, positioning Mutis as both a cultural ambassador and a laboratory for botanical experimentation. Mutis Nueva Granada frames perfumery as a dialogue between science and art. The creative vision stems from the Real Expedición Botánica, a 1783‑1808 scientific mission that catalogued thousands of native species. The brand treats each fragrance as a field journal entry, translating botanical data into olfactory narratives. Core values include respect for biodiversity, support for local growers, and a commitment to authenticity. Rather than chasing trend cycles, Mutis selects ingredients that have a documented history in Colombian ethnobotany, allowing the scent to tell a story that is both geographic and temporal. The house also embraces a minimalist aesthetic in its marketing, letting the fragrance itself serve as the primary communicator. Sustainability informs the entire process: ingredients are harvested under fair‑trade agreements, packaging uses recycled glass, and the brand funds small‑scale conservation projects in the regions that inspire its scents. This philosophy positions Mutis as a bridge between the scientific rigor of the 18th‑century expedition and the contemporary desire for immersive, place‑based experiences.