Based in Berlin Sissel Tolaas has been leading in the field of olfactory art since 1990. Having trained in organic chemistry she has developed some of the most important features of the technology around the sense of smell. Recognition and reproduction.
Clearly the role of smell within culture is one which is important to Tolaas: "In the modern West, we tend to think of smell in purely aesthetic terms, pleasant or unpleasant. In many other cultures however, smells have provided and still provide a basic means of defining the and interacting with the world. This is particularly the case in so far as odours are closely associated with personal and group identity. The study of the history, anthropology, and sociology of smells is, in a very real sense, an investigation into the ‘essence’ of human culture itself.” Sissel Tolaas 2005
Some of Tolaas' projects include:
The SMELL RE_searchLab (2016)
The Fear of smell — the smell of Fear at the Tirana Biennale(2005)
Smell memory kit (2016)
52 Smell Scapes of cities (since 1998)
Here’s a link to a YouTube video of an interview with Sissel Tolaas in 2022:
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