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...
Re-awakening the Magic
“The Perfumative. Perfume in Art and Design” was the title of an international conference at Zurich University of the Arts (8-10 November 2018). The conference seeked to open up a dialogue between perfumers, researchers, designers, and artists.
The fragrance of images
The current exhibition “The fragrance of images” at Opelvillen in Rüsselsheim presents a selection of works from the Barcelona based collection olorVISUAL.
Smelling outer space: “intimidating”
ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst has taken over the role of International Space Station commander from NASA astronaut Drew Feustel earlier today. This is a perfect opportunity to highlight his recent interview with Jan Böhmermann on how outer space smells.
Following an artisan perfumer: “Duftspuren”
This post takes a look at artisan perfumers. It discusses the autobiographical record by Sven Pritzkoleit published in 2016.
More than functional bottles: Scent & Symbolism
A recent exhibition on perfumed objects and images provides the context for a few remarks on the role of flacons. Even after the finassage the catalogue deserves more attention.
Spicy art in public space at Zurich
From June 30 to July 29, 2018, the Fondation Beyeler is showing an installation by the Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto (b. 1964 in Rio de Janeiro) in Zurich Main station.
“The Art of Scent” 3.0 at Dubai
“The Art of Scent” curated by Chandler Burr at the Museum of Art & Design in New York in 2012 has been a major milestone in the recent history of scent culture. In an interview during the exhibition with Artforum Chandler Burr referred even to perfume (!) “as an artistic...
Smelling digital culture
Digital culture seems to epitomize a scentfree world. Information technologies are clean. The sense of smell seems to be the outsider of a digital world. Isn’t this part of the story we tell about progress and a postindustrial society?
Body odor impacting on other’s work performance
Human body odors can transfer anxiety-related signals. This is a well documented fact. Yet, it is an open question how these signals impact in real-life situations.
ArtBasel 2018: Wake up and smell the…
Art Basel offers a premier platform for renowned artists and galleries. The 49th edition brings together about 290 galleries from 35 countries and opened earlier this week. In fact, “art is now absolutely a consumer product, and that’s the huge difference. It’s a whole different world”, as Paula Cooper recently noted...
Inhale * Hold * Exhale
The current exhibition Inhale – Hold – Exhale at the Kunstmuseum Thun is the first institutional show of the Danish artist Jeppe Hein in Switzerland (until 29 July 2018).
Exhibition in Berlin: “It smells like… flowers & fragrances”
The exhibition ‘It smells like… flowers & fragrances’, on view at me Collectors Room in Berlin from 14 April to 1 July 2018, reveals the undiminished potential of the visually rich subject of depictions of flowers and the subversive olfactory power of fragrances in contemporary art. The curator is Dr Heike...
“Scent Culturalizing” the end of an industrial era
Germany will shut down its remaining black coal mines by the end of this year. This plan seals the fate of the sector that powered the country’s industrial revolution and post-war economic miracle. Since its early beginnings in the early 1970s this fundamental shift has had widespread implications the former...
Sensory typography: How does your letter smell?
Graphic designer Sarah Hyndman thinks that the shape of a letter can impact the way stuff tastes, smells, and sounds. To her, typefaces are multi-sensory experiences that affect the way we interact with the world around us.
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