Perfume as Practice

Exhibiting at Platforms Project involved invigilating in our exhibition space 8 hours a day for 4 days. As such, it afforded me a lot of time, and I sought to utilise that time effectively to contemplate and theorise on new directions Perfume as Practice could take.

While I will always strive to exhibit 2 solo shows a year based on perfume portraiture, there are other avenues I wish to explore in an effort to widen my understanding of what perfume can be when contemplated from a contemporary art platform. One such avenue is an understanding of the capacity perfumery has for emotional responses.

By this, I mean that I want my audience to respond to my perfumes in a raw, honest way similar to how other art forms can evoke emotional responses. Often, people will tell me how a perfume I have made makes them recall certain events and experiences, no doubt due to the links scent has to memory. This is not exactly what I want to achieve. I want to see if an audience can feel a base emotion, such as love, hate, happiness or sadness without any caveats associated with memory.

It’s a seemingly simple premise, and its art functioning at its most basic level. But so strong are the links scent has to memory that I don’t know if it can be achieved. So I have decided to use a few aesthetics and visual cues that will allow an audience to respond to the perfumes within the context of emoji’s. Yes. Emoji’s.

You see, emoji’s too, function on a basic level. They are instant like the instant hint of top note you get when you spray a perfume. They can be dismissed and evaporate into the subconscious as quickly as an Eau De Toilette evaporates into the air. Fusing the craft of perfumery with the visual language of emoji’s seems to make sense. But how viable is it in practice, and how will an audience respond to it? Well, I’ll be trailing the idea at Horsforth Walk of Art, Leeds, in July. So I guess we’ll find out then!

Earlier this month I exhibited at Platforms Project, Athens as part of a group exhibition that looked at the contemplation of our solar system. I, alongside artists Sharon Mossbeck and Alison Whitmore, took 3 planets and interpreted them through our own modes of enquiry with reference to Ancient Greece.

Sharon’s work comprised painting and cross-stitch, Alison’s comprised sculptural and works and I presented 3 perfumes, each representing the Greek gods of Zeus, Kronos and Ouranos.

Platforms Project – which is an art fair – was well attended. It reached 16,000 people and our exhibition was well received. I even managed to sell a thing or two, which is great. There are, however, a few caveats with regard to my own work that should be addressed if I am to learn anything and develop from the experience. You see, after much consideration of how to translate three Greek Gods into a scented experience, I decided ultimately to play it straight – simply designing 3 perfumes that acted as portraits of each God. I assumed that this would result in a clear connection between object and concept and would transcend language barriers.

Ironically, by playing it so straight I exposed just how obtuse the notion of a perfume portrait actually is. While the audience did seem to rather like the scents and visual embellishment on display at a base level, the link between the perfumes and the Greek Gods wasn’t as clear as I thought it would be. It required further explanation, which wasn’t always easy to do due to a combination of a complex concept and the language barrier. (although this is partly my fault – I really ought to learn Greek if I’m going there every year.)

Interestingly, a volunteer who also helped out with Platforms Project last year said that she remembered the scented experience I designed last year and that, while she liked what I did this year, she loved what I did last year, which was essentially a narrative based on the notion of The Grand Tour, which incorporated scent:

So perhaps scented sculptural work designed to tell a story, rather than a straight perfume portrait, would actually be more successful in engaging a wider audience? Or maybe the Greek Gods and the complexities of their narratives would benefit from a different approach to a straight perfume portrait? Perhaps a more careful consideration of why I’m choosing specific scented designs is required, based on the concepts I’m trying to reveal.

Either way, it was once again a pleasure to exhibit at Platforms Project and naturally it was another great chance to visit a beautiful city. But maybe next time I’ll leave the perfume at home.

Next week I travel to Athens to participate in Platforms Project – an independent art fair in the heart of the city. It’s the 3rd time I will have entered work into the art fair, and the 2nd time I’ve directly been involved in the curation and installation of my work.

This year my participation in Platforms Project will once again take the guise of a group exhibition. The exhibition, entitled ‘Wonderer’ seeks to reacquaint an audience with Ancient Greek appropriations of the planets.

The exhibition comprises 3 artists – myself, Sharon Mossbeck and Alison Whitmore together form arts collective Fronteer. We have taken 3 planets each to interpret, explore and interpret from an Ancient Greek context. My chosen planets are Uranus, Saturn and Jupiter. Or, as the Ancient Greeks would have it; Ouranous, Kronos and Zeus – three Greek Gods with a family lineage.

So how does a fine art perfumer go about creating something from these three Gods? Well, by taking advantage of the family lineage and utilising the capacity fragrance has for narrative, metaphor and I have encapsulated the planets of Ouranous, Kronos and Zeus in three separate fragrances.

Each fragrance contains potent spices and woody notes; alluding to their godly, confident qualities and direct family history. Yet they also contain delicate floral notes, zesty fruits and earthy spices in an attempt to describe each God’s individual narrative.

Each perfume is a portrait of the respective God and is as rich and complex as you might expect from portraiture. Hopefully my audience at Platforms Project will agree that my unique approach to perfumery reveals a meaningful and untapped art form.

The more stuff you are doing, the less time you have to write about it. That’s a saying, isn’t it? Well if it isn’t it should be. Over the last 10 days I have been so embroiled by artistic activity that I have barely had time to catch my breath. As such, I have shamefully neglected my weekly obligation to a-n artist blogs. However, in an attempt to rectify the situation I have comprised a double-length blog post detailing and assessing everything I have done since last Monday. I’m sure it’s the kind of thing a lot of artists can relate to. Here goes:

Monday 9th April.

Its two days until installation of my solo show at Bureau, Blackburn. Experience has taught me to make perfumes at least 3 weeks prior to an opening as this gives fragrances time to go through a maturing process and settle before the exhibition begins. As such, the fragrances are complete. But, unsatisfied with merely providing perfumes, I spend today completing all visual material for the show. This comprises of 4 paintings representing 4 saints, and one painting that seeks to describe the show as a whole. I get to my studio at midday and leave at 7pm, having completed all the work to my satisfaction.

Tuesday 10th April

The main body of the work for my show is done. Feverishly, I start occupying my mind with the little things, like what colour paper to use for wall text, the font of my wall text and where the wall text should be placed. While important it hardly warranted the attention I gave it. It’s like I don’t know how to stop.

Wednesday 11th April

This is the day of installing Perfume as Practice at Bureau, Blackburn. Travelling from Sheffield via Leeds on the train with bags of perfume, shelving, tools and paintings at first felt like a daunting prospect. But, with the help of fellow artist Sharon Mossbeck, the journey went smoothly. The install essentially entailed the installation of 4 shelves, 5 paintings and a few other embellishments, before placing 15 perfumes on the shelves. It was relatively straightforward to be honest.

I stay in Blackburn for the night as the opening evening is tomorrow.

Thursday 12th April

Thursday was the Opening Evening of Perfume as Practice. Beforehand Sharon and I took the chance to visit Samlesbury Hall nearby: After all, one of the accidentally great things about being an artist is the opportunity to visit places you may not get a chance to go to otherwise.

The opening seemed to go down well. As ever, attendees were struck by the innovative nature of perfume as a vehicle for portraiture, and appreciated the interactive element of actually being able to smell the perfumes. I also held an artist’s talk during the opening, which helped consolidate the themes, ideas and desires found within the making of the exhibition.

I travel back from Blackburn to Sheffield after the opening.

Friday 13th April

Today was the installation and opening of Sharon Mossbeck’s solo show at BasementArtsProject in Leeds. As a means to return the favour from Blackburn, I helped transport her work from Sheffield to Leeds, and I was with her for the opening event. Her exhibition is called ‘Forgotten Spaces’ and charts medieval dungeons by utilising cross stitch. It looks fantastic, and rather harrowing. Credit too should go to BasementArtProject’s Bruce Davies, who designed the curation of the show in a deliberately dark and claustrophobic way.

I travel back from Leeds to Sheffield after the opening.

Saturday 14th April

Today I hold a perfume making workshop at Bureau, Blackburn to coincide with my exhibition. I am pretty well versed in delivering these workshops by now and as expected it runs smoothly. As ever, the experience of exchanging knowledge and introducing attendees to the artistic capabilities of perfumery is rewarding in its own right.

I travel back to Sheffield from Blackburn after the workshop.

Sunday 15th April

Sheffield is currently embroiled with the needless felling of healthy trees. How does a fine art perfumer respond to this? Simple: By designing a candle that uses earthy woods to reference the beauty of trees and fiery spices that reference the spirit of protest. Such is my ‘Sheffield Tree Protest Candle’:

I placed the candle on social media a few weeks prior, and it seems to have established an audience that would like to purchase one. As such, I spent Sunday travelling around Sheffield physically delivering candles to those who want one. It took a while, but it was a happy excursion, for sure.

Monday 16th – Thursday 19th April

Perfume as Practice is up. Forgotten Spaces is up. My perfume making workshop is done. I have delivered all my candle orders so far. So what next? Well let’s have a look at my emails for a start to see what I have neglected over the last week. Then let’s look at documenting and promoting Perfume as Practice on my various social media outlets. Then let’s maybe start thinking about my upcoming group show in Athens. Then let’s perhaps look at getting more venues for Perfume as Practice next year; and Scents of our Time. The list, as ever, goes on.

Last week I made a bespoke perfume based on coffee. Yes. coffee. Now, I know what you’re thinking – ‘Michael! last month you were making perfumes about planets, and this week, out of nowhere, you’ve made a perfume about coffee?! Why?! I don’t even know you anymore!’

Well, fear not (and maybe calm down a little!) for there is method to my madness. I will explain everything later. First though, let’s have a look at the perfume itself:

‘This is Coffee 50ml EDT’ – to give it it’s full title – is the most overt showcasing of perfume as an art form I have yet made in my position as a fine art perfumer. For one, it’s visual livery is bespoke and of a higher standard than usual; it playfully impersonates a high-end supermarket coffee brand – utilising watercolour, paper and gold leaf to feign the appearance of a luxurious yet affordable product.

The scent itself, though, is at odds with such visual embellishments. As a fine art perfumer, I seek to develop ways of using scent to instigate social, political and environmental comment. As such it is not only the aroma of coffee that takes precedence within the fragrance composition. This fragrance comprises 3 other fragrance notes that allude to the various social, economic and environmental factors associated with coffee and coffee production: Brazilian Rosewood oil, while ethically sourced, is nevertheless from a tree loaded with implications of sustainability that run parallel to coffee production. The Orange oil also derives from Brazil, and as such references the rich history Brazil has with coffee production. Hazelnut is also present, which references the versatility coffee has both as a product and ingredient.

Furthermore and from the context of perfumery, the scent of coffee beans is said to cleanse the nose in preparation for assessing aromatic compounds; it is a tool that allows a perfumer to devise scent combinations with more accuracy. ‘This is Coffee’ shuns the established, clinical use of coffee beans within perfumery and instead places coffee at the very heart of the fragrance composition. Again this removes perfumery from it’s conventions and seeks to place it in a subversive, contemporary art platform.

Phew! So, that was ‘This is Coffee’. Now, what does this mean for my wider creative output? Well, simply put, this is to act as a template for the three planet-based perfumes I am going to produce for Athens next month. ‘This is Coffee’ is a piece of preliminary work that establishes the fact that simply making a bespoke perfume with a meaningful artistic fragrance composition and competent visual livery makes for an engaging scented experience. I feel over recent months I have been thinking a little too hard about how the ‘scented experience’ should act upon the viewer. Stripping my practice down the essentials of bespoke perfume, in a box and embellished accordingly, highlights with precision how the craft of perfume can accommodate meaning beyond it’s preconceptions.

I’m looking forward to bottling Uranus, Jupiter and Saturn in a similar manner over the coming weeks.