German scents exhibition combines 1,000 years of fragrances with art and history

Ever wondered what history smells like? Or ponder the odor of love, or the stench of medieval Paris, or the sacred fragrance of religion? A new exhibition in Germany allows visitors to discover unknown worlds of smells by sniffing their way through 81 different fragrances across 37 different galleries. The show "The Secret Power of Scents," which opened to the public in October at the Kunstpalast museum in the western city of Düsseldorf, combines fragrances with art, taking visitors on a journey of more than 1,000 years of cultural history. "This exhibition is an experiment—and an invitation for our audience to discover the history of scents with their noses," said Felix Krämer, the museum's director general. The exhibition follows a chronological order, from religious artifacts of the Middle Ages through to contemporary art of the 21st century. The various galleries are equipped with scent steles, atomizers, and diffusers to create a connection between the art and the smell of a specific time period or cultural context. "It's the first exhibition worldwide to bring scents into a museum in this form, format, and scale," said Robert Müller-Grünow, the show's curator and a leading expert in the field of scent and scent technology. Certain smells connect to different eras of history. In a gallery dedicated to the Roaring 20s, the room is filled with the uplifting scent of tobacco, vanilla, and leather—a mixture that's a nod to famous early fragrances such as the historic Tabac Blond, which was launched by the fragrance house Caron in 1919. Moving on to modern art, the museum presents more contemporary smells between works of Andy Warhol, Yves Klein, or Günther Uecker that remind visitors of world-famous brands such as Coca-Cola or German airline carrier Eurowings, which diffuses a pleasant and relaxing scent on the plane when passengers board. For visitors strolling and sniffing their way through the show, the 81 different scents opened up a whole new world, visitor Kirsten Gnoth said. “I’ve been to the collection here before, but now it’s completely new with scents that match the pictures and eras,” she said. This article was provided by The Associated Press.