stallion but he became the best Nation-
al Hunt sire in France. You tr y things
that don't work, but you keep going be-
cause you believe in what you do. And
one day it works: this comes through,
or this. Each time a nice filly is born we
say: 'She will win the Diane!' But the
things that work, it's a myster y."
Not that anyone should be able to
explain, in advance, why an exper-
iment m i g h t w o r k , w h e n i t c a n b e
h a r d e n o u g h to do so even after it has
proved effective. Gibson's great-grand-
f a t h e r, J a c q u e s G u e r l a i n , w a s e ve r
t a c i turn when pressed to explain his
genius for finding the right balance—
the right "cross," as it were—in a new
fragrance. After all, it was a hereditar y
genius: the family had established one
of the world's most venerable perfume
and cosmetics brands as early as 1828.
And you can't really articulate instinct;
it's something you are born with.
It is the same with the other passion
handed down from one generation to
the next. So that when Gibson's mother
