Category Archives: Scent Culture Comment & Review

comments and reviews: SCI shares views, observations – there should be a SCI contribution

Leaving behind a divine fragrance

Scent culture originates from religious life. Thus, references to religious practices, feasts & thoughts are a recurring theme in our posts. Today, 15 August, Christians celebrate the Assumption of Mary. It is a day abounding in histories of scent practices.

Continue reading Leaving behind a divine fragrance

A new book for the curious…

Different types of books contribute to the field of scent culture: coffee table books, scholarly books, perfume guides and many more. This book is different. It is original in its approach, writing and design: Nose Dive by Catherine Haley Epstein. Continue reading A new book for the curious…

“A stench beyond experience”

27 January is the day for everyone to remember the millions of people killed in the Holocaust, Nazi Persecution and in subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur. The Holocaust Memorial Day 2020 marks 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. On this day I take the liberty to share a few lines I recently discovered in a book by Marcus Smith. Continue reading “A stench beyond experience”

Fragrant Christmas!

Oranges are native to China. In the late Middle Ages they were new to Europe. Andrea Mantegna was clearly aware of orange trees and their beautiful golden fruit when he created this fragrant image of the Holy Night, the Adoration of the Shepherds:

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The scene is set in an open space, with Mary in the middle, adoring the child while kneeling on a stone step, while to her right Joseph is sleeping, and to her left two shepherds pray.

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Morris, E. T., & Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N. (1999). Scents of time: perfume from ancient Egypt to the 21st century. Munich ; London ; New York: Prestel, p. 66.

 

Stop of controversial advertizing campaign: Renewing smell culture as taboo culture!

Hornbach is a Geman DIY store chain offering home improvement and do-it-yourself goods decided to stop and withdraw the recent campaign “The smell of spring” after being criticized for promoting racist and sexist stereotypes. Continue reading Stop of controversial advertizing campaign: Renewing smell culture as taboo culture!

Patrick Süskind at 70

The history of the emergent field of scent culture has not been written yet. We are still in the midst of creating and shaping this new field. In terms of books that made all this possible very few books stand out.

Patrick Süskind’s novel “The perfume” has been a point of reference in innumerable talks, studies & workshops: How often do I receive questions about this novel when discussing our empirical research! In fact, numerous quotes from the novel have been very effective in anchoring the significance of scent for culture & society.

Here are a few favorites I often refer to:

Odors have a power of persuasion stronger than that of words, appearances, emotions, or will. The persuasive power of an odor cannot be fended off, it enters into us like breath into our lungs, it fills us up, imbues us totally.

He had preserved the best part of her and made it his own: the principle of her scent.

He had preserved the best part of her and made it his own: the principle of her scent.

And an ode to the egalitarian value of smell:

The peasant stank as did the priest, the apprentice as did his master’s wife, the whole of the aristocracy stank, even the king himself stank, stank like a rank lion, and the queen like an old goat, summer and winter. For in the eighteenth century there was nothing to hinder bacteria busy at decomposition, and so there was no human activity, either constructive or destructive, no manifestation of germinating or decaying life that was not accompanied by stench.

From a perfumer’s point of view Christophe Laudamiel calls Süskind’s book “an allegory of Perfumery”. Moreover it educational value is “a gift for a perfumer, fallen out of the sky”.

Despite the prominence of his work, the author is always absent! There are very few photographs, interviews etc. One popular photograph can be found here. What a fascinating contrast! Today Patrick Süskind celebrates his 70th birthday.

If I had a chance to nominate a recicpient for the Contribution to Scent Culture at the Art & Olfaction Awards Patrick Süskind would be my candidate!

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Reference: Laudamiel, C., Hornetz, C., Braja, M., & Patel, S. (2008). From Virginia Education to Real Education. In P. Kraft & Royal Society of Chemistry (Great Britain);Society of Chemical Industry (Great Britain) (Eds.), Current topics in flavor and fragrance research (pp. 329–339). Chichester: Wiley-VCH, p. 339.

Image source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Das_Parfum#/media/File:Parfum_Sueskind_Cover_Diogenes.jpg