Semester two on the fine art course has been focused on experimenting with different scents and researching how memories connect to smell, looking at the artists who use Olfactory art and their processes.
My work takes influence from my time spent at my Granny June's house every other weekend while I was growing up.
Through expensive research and experimentation my work extracts scent from memories using unique methods of extraction such as microwaving, slow cooking, boiling oils and water, espresso machine experiments and other at home distillation methods and creates a story for the senses.
Scent and memories have a strong connection connecting us to our past and reminds us of memories and thoughts that may have otherwise been forgotten and With the influence of olfactory artists Clara Ursitti and Ernesto Neto my work creates an immersive experience for the viewer allowing them to experience some of my memories first hand through scent.
Scent can often connect us back to memories that are seemly forgotten or long past. This phenomenon is due to the brains anatomy, scent is handled by the 'olfactory bulb' that is located at the front of the brain that then sends out signals to the central commands of the rest of the body for further processing. The scents we come by go directly past our limbic system which are the regions related to memories and emotions
Artists Marcel Duchamp, Ernesto Neto and Clara Ursity are seen as some of the fore founders in 'Olfactory Art'. This art form uses scent as an art material and has been around since around 1980 beginning with Marcel Duchamp.
Some of the scents used in these exhibitions etc are, coffee (Marcel Duchamp) and Different spices were put in chess pieces ( Takako Saito).
An exhibition that has inspired me to look into the the practise of 'Olfactory' was Clara Ursitys 'AMIK', This is an exhibition i stumbled across on a day on in Glasgow. This exhibitons stuck with me because of the intense smell of 'Castoreum' "which is a scent extracted from the glands of beaver and by product of beaver trapping which is often used in perfumery and a natural replacement for vanilla". This smell wasn't necessarily a nice one but the impact that it made in the exhibit was something new to me that I haven't experianced before in art and this started my journey with scent and exploring it within my own work.
Links for further reading:
How scent, emotion, and memory are intertwined — and exploited – Harvard Gazette
GRANNYS GREEN HOUSE - COLD OIL INFUSION OVER 7 DAYS
*successful*
The experiment
-Tomato plant vines torn up and soaked in 180ml of vegetable oil and left for 7days to infuse.
- After 4days the oil was beginning to take on the smell and by the 6th the scent of the vines was infused into the oils.
The story
-Granny's green house sat at the back of her house, she grew a jungle of tomato plants with bucke
GRANNTS HOMEMADE LENTIL SOUP- COLD OIL INFUSSION
*Very Successful*
The experiment
-Vegetables, stock cubes and lentils were shredded and put into 300ml of vegetable oil and left to steep, after only a few hours the oil was infused but left for an extra 3 days to geta stronger scent.- will possibly try the method but heating the oil.
The story
-Granny would make home made soup as well as my mum and now
GRANNYS GARDEN- HOT OIL INFUSION EXPERIMENT WITH SLOW COOKER
*mild success*
-The experiment
1 cup olive oil
1/3 cup grass
placed into slow cooker on low heat for 4 hours.
research from how to make 'citronella' oil from lemon grass but using garden grass.
Results
The grass did infuse into the oil but not with the desired scent it became a more caramelised scent that desired.
Perhaps a cold or steam meth
Grass was collected from the garden and put into a clean espresso machine that was passed through severall times to get desired scent.
Vials from each experiment at different temperature's.
At home slow cooker distilling method.
slow cooker, water, siv, plant matter, sive, mini bowl, upside down lid covered in ice.
not successful.
used grass
In the future will possibly reach out to science department and try make a proper still.
Copyright © 2023 cvolpin - All Rights Reserved.
Powered by GoDaddy