Review of “Belle Haleine – The Scent of Art” on Basenotes

You may be familiar with exhibitions that have presented perfume as olfactory art. However, olfactory art is a genre of fine art pertaining to smell that traces its roots back to the avant-garde, early in the twentieth century. A new exhibition at Museum Tinguely in Basel, Switzerland, establishes these historical origins of the genre while showcasing a wide range of practices to the present day that could be understood under this rubric. Curated by Annja Müller-Alsbach, Belle Haleine – The Scent of Art is the largest exhibition of olfactory art kind to date, with works by more than 40 international artists on more than 1200 m². And even though, as it disclaims, it does not “pursue the aim of an art historically comprehensive chronological collective exhibition”, it is in many a sense a history-making exhibition…

Carsten Höller with François Roche, Hypothèse de grue, 2013
Carsten Höller with François Roche, Hypothèse de grue, 2013 Metallic structure, bi-resin, fabric, polystyrene, pvc, polyurethane foam, smoke machine, timer and various substances, L: max 500 cm, Base: 95 cm, width max. 260 cm x height 230 cm Courtesy les artistes et Air de Paris, Paris © François Roche, 2015, ProLitteris, Zurich; Photo : Marc Domage, Courtesy Air de Paris, Paris

Read the entire review by Ashraf Osman and Claus Noppeney on Basenotes at:
http://www.basenotes.net/features/3049-review-of-belle-haleine-the-scent-of-art

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