Fragrance house

La Boticá

La Boticá Studios was founded in 2018 by Dawn Marie West, an Afro-Dominican artist and self-taught perfumer. It began as an online showroom and curated self-care concept shop before evolving into a luxury candle brand, fragrance house, and small clothing capsule. West drew on her experience in fine-art photography, art direction, and museum work, using fragrance as a new artistic medium; as founder, creative director, and perfumer, she shaped the brand through that practice. La Boticá combines contemporary art and architectural precision with Black and Afro-Dominican culture, Dominican heritage, and indigenous botanical ingredients, while producing fragrances and objects in small batches with formulas designed and blended in-house. Its debut collection, The Subtropics, explores identity, memory, and place in connection with West’s Dominican roots. Flor De Selva is a signature fragrance created to honor the Dominican Republic’s natural beauty and cultural heritage, while West has identified Casablanca as her signature fragrance, inspired by Moroccan fig trees and scent’s transportive role.