Tuesday
I am heading for Lausanne, Switzerland, for the opening of Nirvana – Strange Forms of Pleasure, an exhibition curated by Marco
Costantini and Susanne Hilpert Stuber at the MUDAC, the Museum of Contemporary Design
and Applied Arts. This is an excerpt from the press release:
Nirvana – Strange Forms of Pleasure
is Switzerland’s first international-level exhibition to be devoted to forms of
pleasure in contemporary creation, exploring design as well as fashion and contemporary
art, and the first comprehensive study of the influence of erotica on design,
contemporary art and fashion. By turns bold, luxurious and mysterious, the
exhibition presents works by around eighty artists and designers, and over 200
objects and installations. (…) The exhibition invites us to examine our own ideas
and perceptions of pleasure. It forces us to observe how its forms of
expression can cross the line from the private to the public sphere when they
are the subject of fashion, design or art.
I
am happy to say fragrance is featured in Nirvana,
both in the exhibits and in the catalogue, which features my essay “The Specter
of the Saxe Glove” focusing on fragrance as fetish, and more specifically on
the scent of leather.
A
“fragrance cabinet” will present 14 perfumes linked to fetish, sex, skin,
leather and transgression… Sadly, a prominent couture house producing a
mythical leather fragrance did not wish to be associated with the theme of the
exhibition. But several niche brands, including a few I suggested, responded
enthusiastically.
Here’s
the list:
Cuir
Ottoman, Parfum d'Empire
Aziyadé,
Parfum d'Empire
Cuir
fétiche, Maître Parfumeur et Gantier
Narcotic Venus, Nasomatto
Rien, État Libre d'Orange
Vierges et Toreros, État Libre d'Orange
Sécrétions Magnifiques, État Libre d'Orange
Dans tes bras, Éditions de Parfums Frédéric Malle
Cardinal, Heeley
Onda, Vero Profumo
Relique d'amour, Oriza L. Legrand
Louanges Profanes, Parfumerie Générale
Narcotic Venus, Nasomatto
Rien, État Libre d'Orange
Vierges et Toreros, État Libre d'Orange
Sécrétions Magnifiques, État Libre d'Orange
Dans tes bras, Éditions de Parfums Frédéric Malle
Cardinal, Heeley
Onda, Vero Profumo
Relique d'amour, Oriza L. Legrand
Louanges Profanes, Parfumerie Générale
MUDAC – Musée de Design et d’Arts
Appliqués Contemporains
29 October 2014 – 26 April 2015
Open Tuesday to Sunday 11H - 18H
July-August, open Monday 11H - 18h
PL. Cathédrale 6
CH-1005 Lausanne
T+41 21 315 25 30 F+41 21 315 25 39
July-August, open Monday 11H - 18h
PL. Cathédrale 6
CH-1005 Lausanne
T+41 21 315 25 30 F+41 21 315 25 39
Illustration: Betony Vernon, Soul-Less Shoes, 2005, silver
Dimensions: 25 x 9 x 16 cm
Image © Michael James O’Brien
Dimensions: 25 x 9 x 16 cm
Image © Michael James O’Brien
L'actu 
Articles
Mark Woods's "Pierced, Heart of broken Nails" looks like a perfume bottle - it's something about the top. WHAT an enticing exhibit - hope you'll report back on it! nozknoz
RépondreSupprimerIt kind of does, doesn't it? Mark Woods presented his weirdly enticing little fetish-objects in a installation that was a sort of funhouse you could only gaze at through a peephole. Not sure I'll have much time to report on it -- I have so much work the list of things I want to review is just stretching hopelessly. But I'll give it a try. It was a great exhibition, and the artists were a fascinating lot -- which isn't surprising given the theme of the show!
SupprimerI looked him up online and saw an example of the peep hole presentation - so appropriate for these alluring objects!
RépondreSupprimerDon't want to distract you from reviews, but if there are interesting discussions of or reactions to the perfume part of the exhibit, that would be good to hear about. It's a great list of perfumes and with your essay the olfactory component of the exhibit should be very stimulating!
Speaking of art, I'm belatedly testing samples of several Olfactory Studio perfumes this week that I got as a result of your reviews and finding them fascinating so far, an apt match for the photos(Chambre Noire, Lumiere Blanche and Flashback). I'm pleasantly surprised by how well that collaboration worked out.
nozknoz
I am thinking of writing a little thing on that... Quite general since I can't say I took notes (hard to do with a glass of wine in one's hand). As for Olfactive studio, it's a brand I really like -- to me, it's kind of "entry-level" niche, not too weird but quirky and interesting. Lumière Blanche in particular has a lot of character.
Supprimer