Museum
of
Arts
and Design to
Present
First
Museum
Exhibition Exploring the Design of Perfume in November 2012
The Art
of Scent to Feature Pivotal Modern and Contemporary Works Including Chanel
# 5 by Ernest Beaux, Jicky by Aimé
Guerlain, Aromatics Elixir byBernard Chant, Angel by Olivier Cresp,
Pleasures by Annie Buzantian and Alberto Morillas, and Untitled by Daniela
Andrier
The
Art of Scent, 1889-2012, is the first
museum exhibition dedicated to exploring the design and aesthetics of
olfactory art through twelve pivotal fragrances, dating from 1889 to the
present, that profoundly impacted the course of the medium. On view November 13, 2012,
through
January 27, 2013,
at the
Museum of
Arts
and Design, the exhibition will
examine major stylistic developments in the evolution and design of
fragrance, and provide unprecedented insight into the creative visions and
intricate processes of the artists responsible for crafting the featured
works. The scents will be experienced individually in a special installation
designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro that emphasizes the distinct
combination of artistry and chemistry entailed in their creation. The
Art of Scent will be accompanied by a boxed catalogue designed by
Diller Scofidio + Renfro for
MAD,
featuring identically bottled samples of select works in the exhibition.
Organized by MAD’s
Curator of Olfactory Art, Chandler Burr, The Art of Scent explores the
progression of olfactory art, beginning in the late nineteenth century—when
the introduction of synthetic molecules freed scent artists from the
constraints of using all-natural materials, making scent a true artistic
medium—through the present day. The exhibition opens with the work of Aimé
Guerlain, who was among the first to introduce synthetic molecules alongside
natural materials with the design of Jicky (1889). The exhibition
will then lead visitors through an olfactory experience that showcases the
work of the most significant scent artists of the 20th and early 21st
centuries, including:
• Ernest
Beaux, who in 1921 used chemical compounds known as synthetic aldehydes in
combination with a floral structure to create the first great modernist work
with Chanel #5;
•
Bernard Chant, whose Aromatics Elixir (1971) was one of the great
mid-twentieth century works that brought
America
into the forefront of perfume creation;
•
Olivier Cresp, whose Angel (1992) is the paradigmatic gourmand work of the
late 20th century;
• Annie
Buzantian and Alberto Morillas, who in using a carbon dioxide extraction in
their influential Pleasures (1995), mainstreamed a major technological
advance in the medium and altered olfactory design; and
•
Daniela Andrier, whose Untitled (2010) is an ingenious neo-brutalist work
that references nature both violently and abstractly.
“At
MAD,
we are always looking to push boundaries and question the hierarchies in art
by exploring the materials and processes behind groundbreaking work,” said
Holly Hotchner, the museum’s Nanette L. Laitman Director. “There has not
been the exploration or recognition of olfactory art as there has been of
art that stimulates the other four senses. In plain language, this
exhibition is a game changer.”
Presented in MAD’s
fourth floor galleries, the exhibition will facilitate a focused olfactory
experience through the near-complete removal of visual indicators, such as
logos and marketing materials, encouraging visitors to concentrate
exclusively on their sense of smell. The exhibition will also provide
visitors with an unprecedented glimpse into the labor-intensive artistic
process of creating perfume by showcasing the stages of development for one
fragrance, from the initial written brief to the first iteration and through
the layering and modification of scent required to reach the final desired
work of olfactory art.
Recognizing the social aspect of selecting and experiencing perfumes,
The Art of Scent will culminate in a space where visitors may converse,
compare the featured works of olfactory art, and provide feedback about the
exhibition. The shared responses and personal insights will become part of
the exhibition’s record, underscoring that the individual experience of
fragrance is the concluding factor in the works’ artistry and design.
“Much as
museum visitors typically follow the trajectory of modern art and design by
viewing a succession of iconic works, at
MAD
they will be able to explore the aesthetic evolution and creative
innovations of modern and contemporary olfactory works using their sense of
smell,” said exhibition curator Chandler Burr. “While these perfumes are
often encountered, they are seldom acknowledged as the works of art and
design that they are. My goal for this exhibition is to transform the ways
in which people respond to scent artists and their art. The works presented
in this exhibition are ones that have each had a profound impact on the
history of this artistic medium.”
Other
confirmed works of olfactory art featured in the exhibition include:
Drakkar Noir (1982), by Pierre Wargnye; L’Eau d’Issey (1992),
by Jacques Cavallier; cK One (1994), by Alberto Morillas and Harry
Frémont; and Prada (2003), by Carlos Benaim and Clément Gavarry.
EXHIBITION ORGANIZATION
AND
CREDITS
The Art
of Scent is made possible by Founding Major Donor The Estēe Lauder
Companies, and Major Donors Procter & Gamble Prestige, Chanel, Inc., Hermès
Parfums, International Flavors & Fragrances Inc., and Arcade Marketing USA.
Additional support for The Art of Scent is provided by Guerlain—a Funder—and
Women in Flavor and Fragrance Commerce Inc.
MAD
CATALOGUE
AND
PERFUMES
The
Art of Scent, 1889-2012, will be
accompanied by a catalogue in a special coffret. The catalogue will include
an essay by Chandler Burr that discusses the artists and art historical
contexts of a selection of works of olfactory art, juxtaposing them with
creations in other media, from painting to architecture, and artists, from
Domenico Ghirlandaio to Mies van der Rohe, Gabriel Fauré, and Pink. Burr
will examine the works’ different structures and designs to illustrate how
perfume has evolved from 1889. The box will also include samples of works
featured in the exhibition, each contained in an identical 5ml lab bottle,
free of logos and commercial packaging.
ABOUT DILLER SCOFIDIO + RENFRO
Diller
Scofidio + Renfro is an interdisciplinary design studio that integrates
architecture, the visual arts, and the performing arts. Based in
New York City,
the 100-person studio is led by four principals – Elizabeth Diller, Ricardo
Scofidio, Charles Renfro, and Benjamin Gilmartin. In 1999, the MacArthur
Foundation presented Ms. Diller and Mr. Scofidio with the ‘Genius’ award for
their commitment to integrating architecture with issues of contemporary
culture. Selected projects completed or in design include: the High Line
Park, New York City; Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Redevelopment
Project, New York City; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; Blur
Building, Switzerland; Brown University’s Creative Arts Center, Providence;
The Broad Museum, Los Angeles; the Museum of Image & Sound, Rio de Janeiro;
and the Hirshhorn Museum Expansion, Washington D.C. Installation and
performance projects recently completed include: Be Your Self with the
Australian Dance Theatre; How Wine Became Modern, an exhibition designed and
co-created for SFMoMA; and Exit for Terre Natale, an exhibition accompanying
the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP15)
in Copenhagen.
ABOUT THE
MUSEUM
OF ARTS
AND
DESIGN
The
Museum
of Arts
and Design explores how craftsmanship, art, and design intersect in the
visual arts today. The Museum focuses on contemporary creativity and the
ways in which artists and designers from around the world transform
materials through processes ranging from the handmade to cutting edge
technologies. The Museum’s exhibition program explores and illuminates
issues and ideas, highlights creativity and craftsmanship, and celebrates
the limitless potential of materials and techniques when used by creative
and innovative artists.
MAD’s permanent
collection is global in scope and focuses on art, craft, and design from
1950 to the present day. At the center of the Museum’s mission is education.
The Museum’s dynamic new facility features classrooms and studios for master
classes, seminars, and workshops for students, families and adults. Three
open artist studios engage visitors in the creative processes of artists at
work and enhance the exhibition programs. Lectures, films, performances and
symposia related to the Museum’s collection and topical subjects affecting
the world of contemporary art, craft and design are held in a renovated
144-seat auditorium.
Additional Contact
Juliet Sorce / Alina Sumajin
Resnicow Schroeder Associates
212.671.5158 / 5155
jsorce / asumajin@resnicowschroeder.com
Visit
Location
2 Columbus
Circle
New York,
NY
10019
info@madmuseum.org
212-299-7777
Museum
Hours
Tuesday to
Sunday from 11:00 am to
6:00 pm
Thursday and Friday from
11:00 am
to 9:00 pm
closed Mondays and major holidays
Admission
General:
$15
Members: FREE
Students/Seniors: $12
High school students with ID (excluding groups):
FREE
Children 12 and under (excluding
groups):
FREE
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