by Geren Lockhart From a carriage house-turned-studio space atop a hill in LA, artist Kelly Lamb creatively transforms lumps of clay into sexy yet functional geometric objects. Lamb began infusing her fine art pedigree into furniture and home decor you want in your world 20 years ago, and her endeavors...
Comprising a series of multifaceted and interactive sensory experiences that go beyond just the act and perception of sniffing perfume, the Sensorium is the world's first scent museum of its kind. Starting with the history and science of perfume—dating as far back as 2000 BC—the multimedia pop-up, a collaboration between Sephora and one of the world's largest fragrance companies, Firmenich, goes on to present fragrance as a composition of emotional alchemy: the complex interaction of impressions conveyed by various ingredients and how they blend together.
In order to give an enhanced context to what's typically regarded as one of our more abstract senses, the creative studio Neverstop and The D4D collaborated on an installation that relied on architects, designers, technologists and writers, as well as a team of master perfumers from Firmenich. The result is an ingenious and thrilling experience that heightens one's perception of scent by its interaction with sight, sound, as well as an individual's memories and emotions.
In addition to a momentary stop in a scent-deprivation chamber and a fragrance "flight bar," visitors also pass through "First Scent," an audio-visual set-up that coordinates with custom fragrances redolent of early-morning breakfasts, salty beach air and freshly-cut blades of grass—scents that are distinct and recognizable on their own, but often fraught with one's associations to specific moments and memories.
"Lucid dreams," Sensorium's piece de resistance, explores the physical act of smelling. Images projected on a wall morph according to an individual's particular sniff (audibly measured by sniff-registering flower sculptures), and how it changes according to the scent.
Sensorium runs through 27 November 2011 at 414 West 14th Street in New York. For tickets and hours, check out the Sensorium site at Sephora.
Also known as "holy wood," Palo Santo wood sticks have been used for centuries by indigenous Amazonians hoping to ward off evil spirits. As we recently discovered, they also lend a more practical service by freshening up your house with the slightly sweet smell they emit when lit. Unlike traditional incense sticks, the little logs burn slowly allowing them to be used many times. The soothing scent is also harnessed for homeopathy, helping with colds, asthma, arthritis and other ailments.
Special permits are required to harvest the wood, leading to strict laws surrounding the export of the sticks. We picked up some at NYC's Love, Adorned shop but also found a few online purveyors following fair trade practices, including Ellaflor and Floracopeia.
From her claymation "Booty Clap" to animated vintage board games, Kirsten Lepore's slightly twisted sense of humor and gift for storytelling make the young artist's portfolio a fun one to check out on a lazy weekend.
FastCo Design takes us behind the scenes of the laborious creative process that went into creating the much-hyped new Yves-Behar designed Sayl chair for Herman Miller, whose $399 price point came without sacrificing quality or good looks.
James Dyson, the British inventor with the uncommon ability turn fans and vacuums into highly-functional objects of desire, has been given a new list of trivial everyday technologies that need his help. Gadget Crave's list includes several products begging for refinement, including the dishwasher and wireless speakers.
Moxy Creative recently turned out another simple but sophisticated infographic for Everyguyed, this time depicting only the iconic outfits of 20 male musicians.
An inspirational slideshow on FastCo Design shows us personal sketchbook pages from the world's top illustrators and graphic designers, pulled from the new book Graphic: Inside the Sketchbooks of the World's Great Graphic Designers.
Surely by now you've heard the buzz about the Daft Punk-scored Tron soundtrack, and now on Wired you can hear the first official song from the film.
Lomography's latest gives you creative control of the panorama in a retro body. The wide-angle film camera has manual controls for moving the full-bleed exposed film during exposure.
This spot by 1st Avenue Machine for the 2011 Jetta cleverly shows a papersketch car driving down the road, with wind blowing off pages to show layers of its earlier paper design iterations before revealing the car underneath.
A residency award from OSU's Wexner Center for Arts allowed artist Josiah McElheny to create a series of astonishing chandeliers that incorporate accurate scientific knowledge about the Big Bang and the expanding universe—soon to be will be on display at London's Tate Modern.
Revered artisinal perfumer Le Labo crafted five autumnal scents for Anthropologie, available as eau de parfum or more conveniently as a solid "concrete" scent, housed in a tin "inspired by turn-of-the-century measuring weights."
Architect Adrian Johnson was trying to find parts to build a custom couch for his wedding when he stumbled upon a cherry BMW back seat at the scrap yard. A visit to another junk yard turned up a 1970s refrigerator body and the idea clicked. The result are his series of super retro and stylish fridge couches, check out the designs section to see all three models.
The work of his longtime friends and colleagues Peter Saville and Ben Kelly, Factory Records founder Tony Wilson's black granite headstone bears a quote about immortality chosen by Wilson's family—a stunningly moving tribute to a cultural great.
Having perfumed bubbles at Versailles, created olfactory installations, and collaborated with dancers, perfumer Francis Kurkdjian is no stranger to clever experimentations with scent. For a slightly less fantastical but equally delightful experience, he infuses delicate little paper strips with versions his signature fragrances—A Piece of Me (APOM), Lumière Noire and Aqua Univeralis—tailored for interiors. The Perfumed Incense Papers come in chic matchbox-style packaging (matches included) and either fold into zig-zags for burning or, slipped into drawers and luggage, keep clothing smelling fresh.
Boxes of 20 sell from Francis Kurkdjian's online store for €18 each or from Bergdorf Goodman for $25.
This is site is run by Art Director Pakko during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Visit his portfolio site by jumping to www.pacodelatorre.com.
