Kerry Francis 1
Scent is the most emotionally powerful sense a human has, so why has it been neglected for so long in the development of new media technologies? Kerry Francis 314748 May 2006
Kerry Francis 2
University of Plymouth School of Computing, Communications & Electronics BA/BSc Digital Art & Technology or BSc MediaLab Arts Scent is the most emotionally powerful sense a human has, so why has it been neglected for so long in the development of new media technologies? Kerry Francis May 2006
Kerry Francis 3
Contents Abstract …………………………………...……………………………………….. 4 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 5 1 Scientific Scent ………………………………………………………………… 7 1.1 The Anatomy of Smell ………………………………………………... 7 1.2 The Proustian Phenomenon & Olfactory research………………...11
1.3 The Exploitation of Scent …………………………………………… 14 1.4 Pheromones …………………………………………………………...16
2 The Cultural History of Scent ………………………..…………......……… 20
2.1 The Scents of the Ancients …………………………………………. 20 2.2 The Middle Ages & Renaissance .……….………………...………. 26 2.3 Scents of a Revolution ...………………………………………….….30 3 Scent and New Media …………………………..…………….……………… 34 3.1 Odorama …………………..…………………………………………. 34 3.2 Production Scent – Theatres and Films ……..……………………. 35 3.3 The Art of Scent …………….……………………………………….. 38 Conclusion …………………………………………………………….………… 42 References ………...…………………………………………………………….. 44
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Abstract: Scent is so powerful it can transcend time and space and take people back to
distant memories. Triggering powerful emotional responses emulating feelings
they had at the time of the original event and about the people they shared it
with. Scent as an emotional stimulus is more powerful than any visualisation
as it able to add a level of intimacy that no video or photograph could ever
achieve. This dissertation discusses the science behind the Proustian
phenomenon and how the use of smell has developed historically and
culturally. It exposes how large corporations are investing in scent research to
exploit the Proustian phenomenon to increase profits in their retail outlets and
how they tailoring the retail environment to make the costumers want to spend
more. It highlights the events that lead to its neglect today’s society, the
reaction to this by the work of a few select artists and scientists who are
helping to promote its importance and opening people to the experience of
scent which surrounds all of us. Through this research it was made apparent
that the only truly effective way of introduce scent into new media was to
make the media a fully immersive experience. In order for the scent to work in
this environment it is imperative that the audience is not made aware of the
fact that artificial scents are being added, this way they are not distracted
away from the other sensory stimuli and the experience is truly immersive.
If scent is such an emotionally important part of life why has it been neglected
for so long in the media industry?
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Introduction
‘Odours affect us on a physical, psychological and social level…. It is only
when our sense of smell is impaired for some reason that we begin to realise
the essential role olfaction plays in our sense of well being’
(CLASSEN, C, HOWES, D, SYNOTT, A. 1994)
Scent is the most intimate and emotionally powerful sense a person
possesses, it can transcend space and time bringing back memories long
since past. However, this potency is something that has been neglected as
new media devices have evolved, losing out to advancements in audio and
visual technologies. Scent as an emotional stimulus is more powerful than any
visualisation, as it is able to add a level of intimacy that no video or
photograph could ever achieve.
In the beginning of civilisation scent was held in high regard in all aspects of
life, Constance Classen in her book Aroma, observes its rise and decline
through history highlighting its demise. This dissertation will observe this rise
and fall in popularity in order to discover why society today is only just
beginning to except the study of olfaction as a serious matter. Scent is
notoriously difficult to study; scientists have for centuries been making claims
about how olfaction works and how it affects people, though they have not
had the medical knowledge to produce systematic results that could be
replicated. Marcel Proust in his novel ‘In Search of Lost Time’ (1913), explores
the way memories are recalled when a certain scent is present, this
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phenomenon is known as the Proustian effect. However, this was an
especially hard phenomenon to prove through scientific means in an era that
was obsessed with new advancements in audio and visual technologies.
Charles Darwin considered olfaction a primitive sense due to its animalistic
and savage nature. Darwin was held in high regard by nineteenth century
society, and in a time where social class was so important, other scientists did
not want their work to appear uncivilised and so avoided olfaction as a subject
matter. As society has become more liberal and medical knowledge has
increased the work of scientists such as Rachel Herz from Brown’s university
have become more valid in the eyes of the scientific community. Herz
explores many olfactory phenomenons in her work, including the Proustian
effect, relating scent to emotions and taking it to the next level, and
discovering how people can be conditioned to feel certain emotions with
regards to certain scents.
As society is beginning to awaken to the potency of olfactory discoveries,
people are noticing the gap within the media market for olfactory products.
This is particularly noticeable in areas such as advertising, for many years it
has been common knowledge that big chains of supermarkets use fans to
waft the smell of fresh baked bread through their stores to trigger hunger in
the consumer and therefore making them buy more products. It is not just
supermarkets that are capitalising on this form of scent exploitations; big
corporations like Sony are employing olfactory scientists to produce a
signature scent for its stores. By doing this, Sony is hoping to widen their
client base to get the consumers to spend more than they usually would. Even
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internet providers are seeing the potential gap in the market for scent related
products. Telewest have developed a Scent Dome that will work in
conjunction with emails to produce scent related adverts in peoples inbox, this
means companies like Sainsbury can pipe the smell of their freshly baked
bread directly into your home. It is not just scientists which have made the
study of scent more acceptable as an area of study; many artists were
experimenting with scent, with varying degrees of success during the time
when people said it was uncivilised. Hans Laube was the first person to
produce a cinematic scent experience during a screening of his film, ‘The
Rose Ball Game’, in 1939, using cotton balls soaked in rose oil and big fans to
waft the scent to the audience. From then on many people have tried to
emulate this experience using different techniques, though most failed as the
scents were distracting the audience from the content of the film and thus was
seen as no more than a gimmick. Artists like Hilda Kozari and her project,
‘Air’, are trying to change the way people experience scents and making
people more aware of the olfactory environments that surround them. As
people are demanding more from their entertainment experience, companies
like Disney and their team of Imagineneers are developing fully immersive
experiences that are incorporating scent and touch in addition to audio and
visual.
The first chapter will explain how scent works and the Proustian phenomenon
that links scents with emotion and memory triggers. It will highlight the
scientists which have made significant contributions to olfaction and how
companies are taking advantage of these discoveries to increase profits.
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The Second Chapter will show how scent has become neglected through
history, with the rise of education and development in audio and vision. It will
show how scientists, like Charles Darwin, view scent in regards to evolution
and civilisations had a detrimental effect on the credibility of olfactory study.
The third chapter will examine how artists are helping to change the way
people think about their olfactory environment and how companies like Disney
are using scent in conjunction with audio, vision and touch in their rides to
provide the audience with a totally subversive experience.
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1 Scientific Scent
The focus of this chapter is on the scientific functionality of smell and the brain
activity that links it emotionally to our memories. It will explore the scientists
that have produced a positive effect that has aided in our understanding of
scent, and those scientists whose misconceptions lead to the hindrance of
olfactory development. It will then talk about how big corporations are
investing large sums of money into olfactory research and technology to
increase profits.
1.1 Anatomy of smell
Before the psychology of smell can be discussed, it is important to understand
the anatomy of the olfactory system and how it works in conjunction with the
brain. Compared to animals the human sense of smell is extremely primitive,
this is because animals rely on their sense of smell to survive, whereas
humans have developed other coping techniques to aid their survival. Every
day, people are persistently and unconsciously sampling their olfactory
environment. From this data they are informed if the environment they are in
is harmful or not, for example, if a person smelt smoke they would assume
that fire was in the vicinity. People are also able to tell whether or not the food
they are consuming is safe, and even the presence of another person, all by
using the olfactory data of the objects in an environment. A human sense of
smell does not always require air in order to work; babies are able to smell the
amniotic fluid that surrounds them in the womb which then makes them able
to recognise their mothers from birth.
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Smells are produced by air borne chemicals, these molecules travel up the
nasal cavity and are dissolved in the mucus coating of the olfactory
epithelium. The epithelial tissue contains three different types of cells, the
neurons which translate the odour, support cells which protect the neurons by
secreting the mucus, and the basal cells which develop into neurons, which
help to replace any damaged or dead neurons. As olfactory perception has
been an overlooked area of study within the scientific community, many
theories exist to explain the perception process, none of which can explain the
process in its entirety. Dr John E Amoore in his paper, ‘Molecular Basis of
Odour’ (1970), established the shape theory he discovered in 1952 at Oxford
University. This theory implies that the sensation of smell occurs because of a
lock and key relationship, between the neuron and the odour molecule. Each
neuron’s receptor is a specific shape, as is the molecule. In a lock and key
structure, the molecule will have a complementary shape, thus allowing them
to fit together as a key in a lock does. It has been discovered that we possess
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347 different olfactory receptors, and as humans we can perceive 10,000
different smells. Therefore, it means the perception of smell is created when
the electrical signals of the different receptor cells combine, and is processed
by the brain to produce different scents. Luca Turin, in his paper, ‘A
spectroscopic mechanism for primary olfactory reception. Chemical Senses’
(1996), has proposed a different theory for the perception of smell, known as,
the vibration theory of olfaction. This theory implies that the odour receptors
respond to the frequency of vibrations of the odour molecules. Electrical
signals are passed through the axons of the neurons, and converge in
glomeruli on the olfactory bulb in the brain. The electronic signals are then
sent to various segments of the brain to determine the concentration,
proximity and any memory links that may already be present regarding that
specific odour. The olfactory cortex, where the processing occurs, has a direct
link with the amygdala, which is responsible for emotional memory, and the
hippocampus where memory processing occurs. Experiments by Keller and
Vosshall, written in their paper, ‘A Psychophysical Test of the Vibration Theory
of Olfaction’ (2004), set out to investigate Turin’s claim. However, the results
from the investigation provided no satisfactory evidence to support Turin’s
claim.
1.2 The Proustian Phenomenon & Olfactory research
When a scent is processed, it can prove to be a powerful involuntary memory
trigger; this effect is known as, the Proustian phenomenon. Marcel Proust
discusses this in his novel, ‘In Search of Lost Time’ (1913); he explains that
scent triggered memories lead to a more emotional response than any other
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sensory stimuli. A prominent segment of this book is called Madeline, where
Proust experiences a vivid memory of his childhood linked to the tea soaked
Madeline biscuit.
‘As humans, we're not immediately predisposed to respond to a scent and
believe that it is good or bad’ (Herz, 2005)
Rachel Herz is a psychologist at Browns University, and has conducted many
experiments to examine the link between memory and olfaction. ‘Scents and
Emotions Linked by Learning, Brown Study Shows’ (January, 2005), talks
about some of the experiments and techniques used to explore the link
between memory and olfaction. One of Herz’s experiments involved 36 men
and women, who were asked to rate six different scents, four familiar ones
(rose, peppermint, vanilla and lemon), and two newly created ones; a floral
scent and a clean watery scent. The group was then split into 3 smaller
groups, the first group played a computer card game, which was rigged to
lose and also featured an abundance of irritating sound effects, and the new
unfamiliar scent was emitted into the gaming environment via a hidden
machine. The second group were exposed to the scent whilst in a waiting
room, reading a selection of magazines. The third group were the control
group, who played the computer card game in an odourless room. Each group
went to three sessions over the course of a week, and at the end of each
session were asked to rank all the scents, including the one that two of the
groups had been exposed to. The results showed that the first group, that
played the card game and were exposed to the unfamiliar but pleasant new
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scents, rated them as unpleasant. This is proof that even if the scent was
perceived as pleasant, the first group built up a negative association over
time, due to the frustrating nature of the card game. Through Herz’s research,
the link between memory and olfaction has been further reinforced. However,
not all scientists have had a positive effect on olfactory study.
‘Idiots also resemble the lower animals in some other respects; thus several
cases are recorded of their carefully smelling every mouthful of food before
eating it. One idiot is described as often using his mouth in aid of his hands,
whilst hunting for lice. They are often filthy in their habits, and have no sense
of decency; and several cases have been published of their bodies being
remarkably hairy.’ (Darwin, 1871)
Charles Darwin is a highly respected scientist, who produced highly accurate
evolutionary studies in the nineteenth century. However, some of the evidence
he presented in his papers, ‘The Descent of Man’ (1871), and, ‘The Origin of
Species’ (1872), had a detrimental effect on the study of olfaction. Darwin
stated that our sense of smell became less acute as we evolved away from
the animals that required it for survival, and if we tried to train our noses, we
would be fighting evolution and regress back to our animalistic states, thus
reinforcing that scent was linked with animalistic savagery. It is also believed
that as we evolved to walk on two feet, with our head away from the ground,
our eyes took prevalence and we no longer need our noses to tell us about
our environment. Freud states that from the moment we are born as babies,
we rely on our primitive sense of smell to gather environmental information
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about the people and objects around us. However, as our brains develop and
we become more civilised, we should let our more rational visual sense take
prominence. Scientists who glorified olfaction during the nineteenth century
were seen as low class, uncivilised simpletons, in the eyes of high class
academia, and therefore abandoned their research in favour of visual and
audio development. This is why today we have highly developed audio and
visual systems and equipment, but we are only just beginning to make
breakthroughs in olfactory technologies, hence why the audio and visual of
today is so advanced in comparison to other sensual technologies. This is
why the work of people like Rachel Herz, is imperative if we are to further our
understanding of olfaction, and boost it’s credibility in the scientific community.
1.3 Exploitation of Scent
The majority of the world may still be fundamentally ignorant of the power of
smell, however, it appears that large corporations have picked up on the
experiments of scientist like Herz, and are developing ways to use olfaction to
maximise profit.
‘Our products are about seeing and hearing, so it seemed natural to add smell
to create an immersive sensory experience’ (Christine Belich, 2006)
Sony are using a company called, ScentAir, to create and dispense them a
brand scent for their shops to encourage people to spend money. After
analysing Sony’s statistics, it was found that their primary consumer were
men, therefore they decided that in order to broaden the spectrum of
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costumers to include more women, this new scent should be aimed at a
female audience. ScentAir achieved this by interviewing Christine Belich
(Sony store’s creative director), and other female members of staff, asking
them questions like: Where their female consumers may like to go on holiday?
The research that ScentAir are doing for Sony, highlights the use of the
Proustian effect, by Sony emulating the smells from a tropical holiday location,
they are hoping to evoke the memories that go along with it. When on holiday,
people spend more then they usually would at home, thus emulating the
holiday situation via olfactory stimulation should make the consumers spend
more money. Scent marketing is believed to be the only avenue left for
companies to use to promote their products, and is set to be worth between
$500 million - $1 billion in the US by 2016. (McArthur, K. Dec 2006).
‘People are walking around with their iPods trying to block out sound.
Fragrance is the only thing left. You cannot turn off your nose. You have to
breathe.’ (McArthur, K. quoting Vogt H. Dec 2006)
Companies are now pushing the boundaries of this technology and
incorporating it into traditional advertising media. The Clear Channel have
produced large billboard adverts that release scents, Pepsi have been utilising
scratch panel advertising in magazines to promote diet Pepsi jazz, a medium
which was once restricted to use by perfumers to promote their fragrances.
There are examples where the use of fragrance has had adverse effects. A
San Francisco bus shelters were advertising the ‘Got Milk?’ campaign, which
was a poster accompanied by a strip that released the scent of chocolate chip
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cookies. Due to the enclosed nature of the bus shelter, people were
complaining that they were having allergic reactions, so soon after they were
installed they had to be taken down again.
1.4 Pheromones.
‘It has become crystal clear that human pheromones affect us more than most
people can imagine. Our knowledge of visual input, and of how vision might
influence our sexual behaviour, pales by comparison. During this decade,
many more people will learn that our sexual behaviour is driven in the same
manner as it is in all mammals: directly via olfaction and pheromones, and
only indirectly by phenomenal associations with visual input.’ (Kohl, J.
November 2006)
Pheromones are chemical substances secreted on the surface of the skin,
which travel between members of the same species to communicate different
messages. We posses numerous different pheromones to convey different
messages, these include, sex, food location and alarm pheromones. There
has been extensive research into mammalian pheromones; however, in the
past there has been some controversy in the scientific community as to
whether or not humans produce pheromones.
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'Scientists in Philadelphia have established for the first time that the human
body produces pheromones, special aromatic chemical compounds
discharged by one individual that affect the sexual physiology of another'.
(Rensburger, B. 1986)
The first reliable evidence for the existence of pheromones was provided by
the controlled experiments of George Preti and Winnifred Cutler (1986). The
work of these two scientists remained highly secretive due to the patent they
were obtaining on four different pheromones. The research centred on
pheromones and women’s health, they found that pheromones contained in
naturally occurring male scents helped to maintain good health in women.
They conducted extensive studies at the Monell Chemical Senses Center, and
found that women who had sex at least once a week are more likely to have
regular menstrual cycles, increased fertility and a milder menopause. These
discoveries lead to the exploration of the affect of the male essence and the
well being of women, and also explored the McKlintock effect, where women
who live together experience menstrual synchronisation. The underarm
samples from seven men and women were collected from an underarm patch
they had to wear between eighteen and twenty seven hours a day for a period
of three months. The essence was then extracted and mixed with alcohol; the
mixture contained male scent was applied to the top lips of six women with
irregular menstrual cycles. The scent had a profound effect on these women;
their cycles sped up or slowed down so they were all averaging 29.5 day
cycles. The control group were just given alcohol and as expected their cycles
remained irregular. They repeated this experiment with female essence in
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order to further study of the McKlintock effect, the results showed that women
who received the female essence showed a greater tendency to synchronise
their cycles. This is overwhelming proof of the effect these hidden scents have
over human behaviour and physiology.
Cosmetic companies have been trying to isolate these chemicals so they can
be added to various products to promote well being in women. Other
companies are working towards isolation of these chemicals for a much more
sinister intention; they believe that by adding it into perfume it will make
women seem more attractive to the opposite sex. This is highly dangerous
and could lead to an increase in the amount of birth defects; pheromones are
used as signals to unconsciously advise people of a potential partner whose
genes are least similar to their own. If people started using artificial
pheromones to increase their attractiveness to the opposite sex, their olfactory
systems would not be able to tell the difference in the pheromones, thus
leading to them being attracted to biologically unsuitable partners. Every
person has 46 chromosomes which determines their genetic make up, 23
from each parent; it is possible that some genes they inherit are recessive,
which means that they posses that quality, however it is not displayed
physically if they inherit a more dominant gene from your other parent. These
genes determine their physiology from eye and hair colour to more important
defects like Down syndrome and sickle cell anaemia. So if both their parents
had the recessive gene that person would be born with the defect, this is the
danger of these artificial pheromones. As people’s biology can no longer
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determine the best partner for them, it will lead to a greater probability of these
recessive genes coming into contact.
This chapter has examined the physiology of scent and how the different cells
send signals to the limbic system of the brain, which causes the Proustian
effect, allowing the scents to trigger powerful emotional responses. It has
shown how the early scientific research was hindered by the work of Darwin
and Freud, highlighting the reason why audio and visual technologies are so
much more advanced than olfactory ones. It has introduced the aroma
marketing firms like ScentAir, who are trying to manipulate consumers with
scent related advertising. It appears that scent is the last resort for
advertisers, as people become immune to the visual bombardment of
advertisements that appear in every aspect of our lives. With the rise of
personal devices like iPods, people are shutting off the outside world audio
stimuli which would have no effect on the consumer.
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2. The Cultural History of Scent
This chapter focuses on the rich cultural history of scent, from ancient times to
the present day, highlighting the importance that scent played in medicine and
religion and contrasting it with the role of scent in modern society. To gain a
better insight into the way olfaction was perceived throughout history,
historical documents by Aristotle and religious texts will be used to
demonstrate the views of the eras. By exploring the historical and cultural
context of scent, it will help to further the understanding of how and why
scents in modern society affect people in certain ways.
2.1 The Scents of the Ancients
Scent played an important role in all aspects of ancient life from religion to
health. The Egyptians were the first aromatherapists, using aromatic herbs as
remedies to treat a variety of ailments, for example, the use of theriaque to
dismiss anxiety. They were very aware of the role scent could play in
maintaining the healthy balance of body and spirit, therefore as well as using
herbs for medicinal purposes, they were placed with the dead bodies to
ensure their needs in the afterlife were fulfilled and that their rebirth would be
fragrant and pleasant.
The burning of oils and incense was the most prevalent use of scent in
Egyptian society, the burning of these scents made up a significant part of
their daily worship of the gods. These incenses would burn not only in temples
but in homes and businesses too, allowing them to please the gods in all
aspects of their lives and in return asking for the blessing of the gods in their
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homes and businesses. One of the most prominent of these incenses was
Kyphi, which was burnt in the evenings to honour the day gods as they
prepared for their nightly journey into the underworld and to ensure the safe
return of Ra, the sun god. The burning of incense is still a very common
practise today, with many people using it in their religious practises, in
addition to those who simply burn it because they enjoy the smell.
God said to Moses;
‘Take to yourself perfumes: stacte drops and onycha and perfumed galbanum
and pure frankincense. There should be the same portion of each. And you
must make it into an incense, a spice mixture, the work of an ointment maker,
salted, pure, something holy. And you must pound some of it into fine powder
and put some of it before the Testimony in the tent of meeting, where I shall
present myself to you. It should be most holy to you people.’
(Exodus 30:34-36)
Incense is still burnt in many Roman Catholic and Eastern orthodox churches,
in a container known as thurible and used in their religious services.
Christians believe that the rising smoke from the censer represents the
prayers of the faithful rising to the heavens. Buddhists and other eastern
religions are the largest users of incense in relation to religious practise in the
world today; they use it to purify the surroundings to bring forth the realm of
adornment. Their temples are scent with large coils of incense which are
suspended from the ceiling, worshippers entering the temple wave large
bundles of incense sticks blowing the smoke towards the statues of Buddha.
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Followers of Hinduism were the first to use incense as a form of sacrifice to
the gods, it is used in all their ceremonies but it also plays an important role in
their houses, where it is placed on alters with statues of their deities.
Scent not only played an important religious role in ancient times, but the
roots of the modern day fragrance trade began here. In all eras of the ancient
world, people were creating personal fragrances, and as trade routes through
Arabia became more accessible, the diversity in ingredients increased. The
Greeks and Romans mainly used garden plants in the creation of their
fragrances until trading began with Arabia, they then had access to a
multitude of exotic spices. These growing interests in personal fragrances led
to the existence of professional perfumers, which were integrated into the
household, whose job it was to produce personal fragrances for the family and
also create a signature scent for feasts and other events held by the family.
This practise still occurs today, as mentioned previously, Sony hired the
modern day equivalent of these perfumers to create the signature scent in all
their stores. However, unlike the way in which we use perfume today, it was
common place for members of ancient society to wear more than one
fragrance on each of their different body parts. This brings to light just how
developed their olfactory tastes were in comparison to the modern nose,
where we are more than content with applying one strong scent, also showing
the derogation of scent in our modern culture. The mixture of these exotic
scents, with all the smells of the street life, produced a rich scentscape that
we could not even begin to imagine in today’s world. This is due to people in
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modern society masking the bad odours with artificial ones, which can be just
as offensive to a trained nose. Thankfully we have a covered sewage system
that carries our waste, and regular refuse collections so will never experience
many of the foul odours that existed in ancient times.
Buildings had their own distinct scents, but it was no just the heavy perfumes
inside the buildings creating the aromas, they had spices like saffron mixed in
with the mortar when the building was constructed. This shows how important
their olfactory environment was to them, the concept of mixing scent in with
our modern day brick work would seem like a very alien concept. We still do
use fragrance in our homes and a multitude of devices have been created to
help disperse the scent throughout the house. Members of Roman society
took this a stage further and applied their perfumes to the domestic animals to
scent mark them as the families property. The use of perfume in the home
wasn’t wholly a luxurious indulgence, it played a number of practical roles
within the household.
‘Clothes stored in cedar chests for example, were not only kept fragrant but
also protected from moths, which dislike the scent of cedar. Likewise, incense
burning in storerooms both perfumed the wares within and helped keep out
rodents’ (CLASSEN, C, HOWES, D, SYNOTT, A. 1994)
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Another reason for the use of scent within ancient communities was to
distinguish between people’s social classes. The richer members of the
community were characterised by their sweet smelling fragrances, clean
fragrant homes, and gardens, whereas the poor people smell foul due to the
impoverish conditions they lived in and the working conditions they endured.
However, the people of the city also considered there to be another divide
amongst the olfactory classes. People living in the country, although they lived
in a cleaner environment away from the cramped conditions of city life, were
considered simple minded folk who smelt of the animals they cared for. There
is an interesting contrast to be made with modern society, people still hold
high regard for personal hygiene, however our opinions of people are often
based more on phsyical appearance and the style of clothing they are
wearing. It would also be a lot harder for people to be distinguished by a
scent, as the perfume market is saturated by a few big brands. People in
modern society are significantly more emotionally reserved, and as scent has
such an emotional attachment, it may explain why people choose a subtle
‘fashionable’ scent to conform to the ideals of the social group in which they
have placed themselves.
‘For food, whether dry or moist, though sweet to taste, is often unwholesome;
whereas the odour arising from what is fragrant, that odour which is pleasant
in its own right, is, so to say, always beneficial to persons in any state of
bodily health whatever.’ (ARISTOLE 350 BC.)
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Perfumes and ointments were used in ancient times in the treatment of
disease, for example, people would rub ointments on their chests to promote
a healthy heart and on their heads to combat the effects of alcohol.
This is still common practise today, with various pharmaceutical companies
such as Proctor & Gamble, producing products like Vicks vapour rub, which is
applied to the chest to clear a blocked nose. We have a greater biological
understanding of the human body and its ailments, although we are still using
these scent related techniques as a form of treatments. Another strong belief
of the ancients in relation to wounds, was that treating the putrid smelling
open wounds with perfumes was the key to curing the infection. This
unexpectedly worked to a certain degree as the perfume acted as a germicide
due to the alcohol it contained, also the scent of perfume helped to calm the
patient whose condition was being made worse by the awful stench.
The odour of death was of great concern to ancient society, in particular the
Egyptians, who created mummification to preserve the bodies of their dead as
well as concealing the scent of death. During the mummification process the
body and its organs were anointed with various aromatic powders and oils, to
emulate the scent of the gods so they would be accepted into the afterlife. It
was also common practise in Roman society to burn incense in the house of
the deceased and along the route of the funeral procession, to ward off death
in the surrounding area. The aromatic burning of the bodies on the funeral
pyre was to emulate the rise and fall of the mystical phoenix, a perfumed
legendary bird which would die in the fire to be reborn again, rising from the
Kerry Francis 26
ashes.
2.2 The Middle Ages & Renaissance
‘Personal use of perfumes, in turn was considered a frivolous luxury tending to
debauchery by Church leaders.’
(CLASSEN, C, HOWES, D, SYNOTT, A. 1994)
During the middle ages the illiteracy levels were at an all time low and the
main social power lay with the churches. As the poorer population could not
read the bible, artists created horrific images of hell in order to maintain
control over the lower class. The poor were so traumatised by these images
they strictly followed the laws of the church, the church believed that the
burning of incense and the use of perfumes was a pagan act and shunned
members of the church community for using it. It was believed that they
should be proud of the natural bodily scent bestowed upon them by God; so
many people stopped washing to preserve the scent. Due to the Germanic
invasion causing the fall of the Roman Empire, a lot of the art, literature and
scents of the ancients were lost forever. This new tribe of people were
barbaric and did not have time to waste on the niceties of perfumes and art.
However, over time as Christianity spread through Europe, scent was slowly
reintroduced into church practises as cultures merged and they began burning
incense again as a symbol of prayer.
Kerry Francis 27
‘We are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved’
(2 Corinthians 2:15)
The odour of sanctity was not a new idea in the middle ages, its routes lay in
ancient times when people such as the Egyptians and Greeks believed that
their gods all had scents and tried to emulate them when anointing their dead.
The odour of sanctity is the scent infused by the Holy Spirit on those who live
a holy existence honouring God. It is often said to emit from saints as they are
dying and can be smelt in the air for some time after their death. There are
numerous accounts written about these olfactory experiences, one of the
more famous accounts evolves Lydwine of Schiedam.
‘Both [Lydwine] and her cell were found to be redolent, so that those who
entered thought that divers aromatic simples [herbs] had been brought in and
scattered there. And this wonderful sweetness was perceived when she was
visited or touched by the Saviour or by an angel, or when she returned from
heaven or the regions of paradise.
(Á KEMPIS, T. trans SKULLY, V. 1912)
Lydwine had disobeyed her father and refused to marry, saying that she
would never marry a mortal man; one day she fell on the ice, breaking her ribs
and was subsequently confined to her bed for the next thirty-eight years.
During that time she was seen within the community as a virtue of religiosity
and patience. Lydwine would receive frequent visits from her guardian angel
who would lead her by the hand on heavenly journeys, this hand was said to
Kerry Francis 28
be so fragrant that it overwhelmed the visiting priest who smelt it, who would
then collapse to their knees and confess their sins to her. Being bed ridden
meant she had a lot of open sores, which ordinarily in this era should have
had the vile odour of rotting flesh however her open sores smelt of the
sweetest perfumes.
These miraculous events were causing so much disruption in the church that
officials were telling people that what they experienced was a trick of the Devil
or overactive imagination. The church wished to retain the power it had over
the communities, so by chastising them for such visions and experiences they
were able to suppress the people’s belief in these occurrences. The use of
odours in middle age teaching of the Christianity was further aided by the
large quantity of olfactory material written in the bible. The illiterate members
of the lower classes could more intensely relate with the olfactory imagery,
which created powerful metaphors of good and evil. This was another sensory
vice used by the church in order to have control over them. By using scent
along with vivid imagery the church were able to gain control, however, by
saying that these visions were hallucinations sent by the devil, they trivialised
the olfactory experiences of the people, dealing a huge blow to the
importance of sensory experience in the following centuries. In modern
society we live in a much more secular and diverse culture where people are
not told what to believe. Though due to this, many people are not committing
to any religion and leading happy secular lives, this may explain why we are
not having the kind of sensory religious experiences of the past.
Kerry Francis 29
The middle ages suffered from frequently occurring plagues for over three
hundred years. Modern science can tell us how these plagues happened, the
reasons why they spread and how to avoid an outbreak. Unfortunately for
people in the fourteenth century, they did not have the developed medical
knowledge to effectively handle the situation. Study of their history tells us that
the plagues were caused by the fleas that were carried by the rats off of
trading vessels, though people at the time believed it was the foul smells that
surrounded them. Being a sacred society they immediately blamed the foul
smells on demons that had poisoned the air making people sick, even the
scientific community blamed invisible poisons being transmitted from the Sun
and planets. The foul odours that came from plague victims was further proof
of these outlandish claims, due to the religious nature of the community it was
said that the scent of the victims was the smell of their sins. As the odour
appeared to be the most logical cause of the plague so people started to find
ways of purifying the air. Large bonfires burning aromatic woods were created
in the towns, and in the sickrooms of plague victims, aromatic herbs were
placed round the windows, doors and burnt in the fireplace. Although people
burnt garlic and lavender to purify the air, they weren’t without their medicinal
qualities; they provided powerful germicides which improved the condition of
many of the patients. The importance of these scented remedies proved so
popular that London was an olfactory wonder:
‘Such Olfactory imagery would have been powerful not only in itself but in its
emotional associations. The smells of home and town were the smells of an
Kerry Francis 30
olfactory war, an immense battle against the deadly odours of corruption in
which every pungent scent was enlisted’
(CLASSEN, C, HOWES, D, SYNOTT, A. 1994.)
It is hard to imagine this kind of olfactory landscape in London today which is
dominated by the scent of traffic and pollution. It appears that many of the
major inland towns and cities have lost their olfactory identities, though this
may be due to the fact that people in modernity do not have the time to
discover and appreciate these olfactory landscapes.
2.3 Scents of a Revolution
The end of the Eighteenth century began the sanitary revolution and the start
of the conditions we live in today. The industrial revolution had lead to a vast
increase in the populations of the larger cities; this led to the large quantities
of houses being built in very close proximity to one another. These cramped
and filthy living conditions meant that diseases were able to spread easily,
causing mass outbreaks of typhus and cholera. People were still intellectually
naïve to the cause of the disease and blamed it on the stenches coming from
the cramped dwellings of the factory workers. There was no refuge protocol in
place so it was simply put into the streets, which in turn helped spread the foul
smells and disease. However, this prompted people, for example, Hector
Gavin in his publication, 'Sanitary ramblings, being sketches and illustrations
on Bethnal Green' (1847), to go on olfactory tours of the city and record the
scents in a report to bring to the attention of the government just how bad the
living conditions of the working class were. In 1858 the smell was so bad that
Kerry Francis 31
the government considered moving the parliament outside the city, though
eventually it was decided that it would be more beneficial to address the
issues and put into place measures to increase the hygiene standards of the
city. The hygiene conditions of the working class improved through the
teachings at the local schools and thus the smell of the city greatly improved.
The French revolution saw the working class rise up against the aristocrats,
shunning the luxurious extravagances that were represented in the high
society, which included things like Perfumes and other olfactory treats. In
England, due to the increase in hygiene, people no longer had to mask their
odours, so perfume was seen as nothing more than an extravagance and a
waste of money. Members of high society still used perfume, though they
were much more restrained in the quantity they used. There was also a
gender divide occurring within the perfume industry, until now, both sexes had
worn the same perfume; the floral scents were now seen as being too
feminine and were therefore restricted to use by women. The importance of
scent was also devalued as it was seen as the sense of emotional and
irrationality which was best left to the female population. Men of the era were
concerned with the industrial revolution and exploration, therefore scientific
research concentrated on vision, for example, the development of the
microscope. This was the beginning of the society who no longer valued scent
as anything more than a trivial luxury, indulged in by women of the higher
classes.
Kerry Francis 32
The twentieth century bought about two world wars, women took over the
male roles as the men went to fight, and the financial situation of the countries
involved became increasingly unstable. People spent all their time
concentrating on the war effort and no longer had time or money for whimsical
past times. People became more emotionally resilient and hardened to the
ways of the modern society. After the war the economy was still suffering,
however people were trying to return to normality, the men came home and
the gender roles shifted again. The women once again became housewives
and reclaimed their femininity using perfume on special occasions to reaffirm
their status. As time progressed, people still continued to pursue audio and
visual research as olfaction slipped into obscurity. In twenty first century
society, people in the west have a greater disposable income than ever before
and are increasingly concerned with fashion and their appearance. Our
culture is becoming more diverse and people have become more socially
accepting of each others differences. It is now common place for men to use
as many grooming products as their female counterparts and perfume is once
again becoming fashionable. Celebrity culture is booming and people are
trying to emulate the styles of their favourite celebrities, including the
fragrances they have commissioned. Scent is once again making a triumphant
return in the public sphere; however, the scents of the modern day have an
unfulfilling sense of artificiality about them.
It can be concluded from this cultural exploration of scent that what was once
an integral part of life in the ancient society slowly became censored by the
church in the Middle Ages in an attempt to control people. As sanitation
Kerry Francis 33
improved in the late eighteenth century and people became better educated,
they began to see the use of fragrances as a frivolous expense rather than a
medical necessity. This was reinforced by the discovery of germs by Louis
Pasteur, as the cause of disease rather than foul odours. The elite members
of society also commanded how the study of olfaction was viewed, if they
described it as primitive, backwards and barbaric, the scientist studying it
were seen in the same light. In order to save their careers, they abandoned
olfaction and focused their research on more credible subjects like sight and
sound, which would provide reliable, easily measurable results to back their
discoveries.
Twenty first century society has more liberal views allowing people to study
subjects like olfaction without the fear of ridicule and have their work taken
seriously. Due to the advancements in technology and a greater
understanding of human psychology and physiology, people from all these
areas are collaborating to produce credible results which are increasing our
knowledge of olfaction. Institutes, for example, The Sense of Smell Institute,
have been set up to support the work of the olfactory scientists helping them
gain recognition. This acceptance of olfactory study has allowed artists and
scientists alike to create projects to help enlighten modern society to the
power that scent possesses.
Kerry Francis 34
3 Scent and New Media
This chapter focuses on the ways that odour has been integrated into media
products over the last hundred years and the effect this is having on the
audiences that consume it.
3.1 Odorama
Immersive museums such as the London Dungeons, recreate elaborate
scenarios featuring fabricated buildings and actors to help set the scene.
Though, no matter how descriptive the dialogues referring to the scent of that
era, people do not possess sufficient language to truly describe these scents.
Therefore, to make it totally immersive, museums have used odorama to
emulate scents of the era. Although it gives the audience some idea of what it
smelt like, the scents used are alien to the modern nose, so it makes it hard to
make the emotional relationship between what you are seeing, hearing and
smelling. People may not be able to relate to the scent emotionally, but it has
been noted that these odoramas have had another interesting effect on the
knowledge retrieval that visitors experience. An experiment was conducted by
Aggleton and Waskett, in their paper, ‘The ability of odours to serve as state-
dependent cues for real-world memories: Can Viking smells aid the recall of
Viking experiences?’ (1999), in the Jorvik centre in York, to see if the
traditional Viking scents used could help people recall the information better.
The first group were reintroduced to the scents some years after they had
visited the centre and asked questions about the information they could
remember. The control group were asked questions about the exhibit without
Kerry Francis 35
being reintroduced to the scent and the recall rate of the information was
much lower than the first group.
Subsequently, even though it may not be an accurate representation of the
scents of the day and we cannot totally appreciate it due to the nature of our
own olfactory environments, it has proved efficient in aiding the learning of
visitors.
3.2 Production Scent – Theatres and Films
The first application of scent and visual art forms dates back to the Roman
era, in coliseums where powerful odours were used to mask the scents of
burning flesh and animal remains. However, the sweet perfumes used were
contradictory to the action that was occurring in the arena. The first time
scents that were used in a complimentary manner, was during the nineteenth
century, when actors would scatter pine needles to emulate forests or cook
food in the theatre to emulate banquets and restaurants.
The screening of, ‘The Rose Bowl Game’ (1939), in a family cinema in
Pennsylvania, was the first film to use scent to compliment the action on
screen. Cotton wads were soaked in rose oil and placed in front of a large
electric fan, which wafted the scent to the audience. The first mainstream
solution to scent related cinema was created by the Swiss professor of
olfaction, Hans Laube, and debuted during the world fair of 1939. Cinemas of
the 1940s were using compressed air to transfer scents through the air
conditioning systems. ‘The Sea Hawk’ (1940) was the first film to utilise this
Kerry Francis 36
method of scent dispersal, using different scent to represent each character,
though due to the confined environment of the cinema, the scents would mix
with one another as the removal technique wasn’t efficient, therefore
producing a foul odour. For many years Laube’s technology lay dormant, until
the producers of the film, ‘The Scent of Mystery’ (1960), remembering the
technology, hired him to perfect it. Laube’s system was the only scent
dispersal system to effectively remove the scent after it was released. The
removal of scent is one of the most important factors in creating a successful
smell-o-vision experience, as the nasal cavity requires a certain amount of
time to clear the molecule of the last odour before it can effectively analyse
another one. Laube made it into a scent brain, which allowed different scents
to be released at set points during the film; the technology was an amazing
achievement, but had too many flaws to be truly successful in a cinema
environment. The scent dispersion was uneven, so whilst some audience
members sitting near the dispenser were overwhelmed, others sitting further
away could not smell anything which led to people sniffing loudly and causing
a disruption. The lack of success of ‘Smell-O-Vision’ led it to being scrapped
quite quickly after it was installed in the select American cinema.
It was not until the 1980’s when scent made a return to the performing arts.
The German Ballet, Nelken (Carnation,1982) by Pina Bausch, saw elaborate
staging involving rows and rows of pink carnations on the stage, whose scent
transcended to the viewing audience, heightening the emotion of the
performance. A similar experience was created by Moses Pendleton’s 1985
ballet, ‘Baseball’, where the smell of fried onion and marijuana were piped out
Kerry Francis 37
into the audience to provide the atmosphere of a traditional American ball
park. Film producer John Walter’s film, ‘Polyester’ (1981), paid homage to the
age of Odorama, utilising the new technique of scratch and sniff scents.
Cinema goers were given special cards with numbered regions on them,
when the number appeared on the top of the screen the audience would
scratch the corresponding number on their cards. This method was employed
by Children in Need in the late nineties with a novelty scratch and sniff book
that worked in the same way, though the smells in the book seemed foreign
to the audience that they found it hard to make the connection with what was
on screen and what they smelt. The main problem with scratch and sniff is
due to the physical act of scratching; the panels break the illusion of being
integrated into the film, which in turn emotionally detaches the audience from
the action, the main point of adding to scent in the first place.
The only way scent vision will work, is if a way can be found to effectively
introduce scent into the environment subtly without the knowledge of the
audience, this way if the audience is not consciously aware of it, they will not
become detached from the film by trying to smell the scents instead of
concentrating on the plot. Though the technology at present remains a
mystery, it would appear that this has been achieved by the Walt Disney
Imagineneers, successfully integrating scent technology into a number of their
attractions at the famed Walt Disney World parks. For example, one of this
years newest attractions to join Walt Disney World’s Epcot park is, ‘Soarin’.
Kerry Francis 38
‘[Soarin’] employs synchronised wind currents, scent machines, and a moving
musical score set to a film that wraps 180 degrees around you, making this a
thoroughly enveloping experience.’
(BIRNBAUM, S. 2006)
I believe that successful use of scent within these attractions is mainly due to
the scent being introduced as a subtle element and it is not trying to take
precedence over the other senses. The downfall of Odorama and
Smell-o-Vision was due to people being made aware of the scents being
pumped into the screening room. This was a new and exciting idea, so rather
than concentrating on the film plots, they engaged in the novelty of trying to
distinguish the scents being emitted.
3.3 The Art of Scent
The way in which scent is being treated in the majority of visual media has
meant that its uses have become no more than a novelty, which has trivialised
its emotional power. However, artists are helping to counteract this; projects
which are using scent in a much more integrated manner are helping to boost
the status of smell as a primary sense.
‘Air’ produced by Hilda Kozari, is described as an ‘Urban Olfactory
Installation’; it consists of three translucent bubbles which have videos
projected into them and a perfume, which was specifically created to
represent the scents of each of the three cities. Kozari has studied the effect
scents have on people and their perception. This understanding of scent
Kerry Francis 39
allowed her to create a subtle but powerful image of each city, unlocking the
olfactory region of the brain provoking potent emotional responses in the
viewer. Again this works well, as it is an immersive experience where scent is
presented in a subtle ethereal manner unconsciously to the audience.
‘The vision and research work of Dr Jenny Tillotson has the potential to
provide breakthrough progress in the development of the whole fragrance
industry. The application of nanotechnology, microprocessors and biosensors
to fragrance development, linked with new insight into the power of fragrance
and fragrance ingredients to affect personal well being, have the potential to
change the whole way we appreciate and apply fragrances in the future’
(AYRES, J. 2006)
Tillotson has produced many works combining senses with fashion and
personal well being. She has created some interesting pieces, including a
smart second skin which measures the well being of the wearer via biometrics
in the same way a person’s natural skin adjusts. A majority of her work
focuses on the importance of scent in relation to well being, the World health
Organisation has predicted that by 2020, depression will be the biggest
disease after heart disease, and her products aimed to help via aromatherapy
that is tuned specifically to the emotional needs of the wearer. Tillotson’s work
is phenomenal and extremely useful to olfactory society, however as these
products have not been mass released to mainstream society, their
practicality is not yet known.
Kerry Francis 40
The use of these products in the public domain could also question people’s
rights of smell. Imagine a crowded commuter train in a time where these
second skins have become common place, the emotions of the commuters
will all differ depending on age, sex, the type of work they do and the kind of
day they have had. The simultaneous release of all these scents would create
a similar effect to that experienced with the original Odorama and produce a
putrid mix of odours. Trains have poor ventilation, making it hard to breathe on
a crowded train in normal conditions; however with the addition of these
chemicals into the atmosphere it could worsen the condition for passengers.
In today’s society it has been noted that due to the amount of pollution in
cities, the asthma rate has greatly increased. With the addition of these
scented products adding extra chemicals into the environment, it could have
an untold affect on sufferers. Due to this olfactory pollution, the use of these
scent emitting products could become as controversial as the smoking ban
and they will be confined for use only within a home environment. This
controversy could however have a hidden benefit; it would highlight how
important scent is and make people more aware of the natural scentscapes
which surround them.
Scent has been used over hundreds of years in order to enhance the
audience’s experiences of entertainment being provided; this has been
achieved with varying degrees of success. The key to a successful scent
experience is to not make the audience overtly aware that scent dispersal is
occurring, that way the audience’s attention is not diverted away from the
other sensual stimuli. Artists are helping to highlight the neglect of scent in the
Kerry Francis 41
public sphere and helping to raise its profile so that people will start to
understand how important it is to their general well being. The artists are also
scientists and have created vast research groups so that the artistic pieces
they create are well informed and can achieve the maximum impact on their
audiences. The only downfall on the artificial scents used in these projects is,
the chemicals producing the odour are made from thirty or so primer
molecules used to recreate a natural scent, which is made from hundreds of
different molecules. A person’s nose is sensitive to these missing molecules
and thus will detect the scent as fake, which does not provide the person with
the same olfactory satisfaction or emotional response that the original scent
would.
Kerry Francis 42
Conclusion
This dissertation has shown the many aspects of scent that must be
considered in order to understand why scent has such a profound effect on
people. Scents carry important biological and environmental information,
informing people of suitable partners or if there is danger in the vicinity. The
scientists, psychologists and historians are collectively gathering their
knowledge of the field which has created a greater understanding of how our
olfactory organs work and the affect scent has on our well being. This
thorough research has led to olfaction having a more prominent place within
the scientific community. However, with this increased knowledge, has come
large corporations who wish to exploit olfactory reactions for their own
financial gain, without thinking about the biological consequences, for
example, companies who are adding pheromones into perfumes and cosmetic
are increasing the risk of birth defects.
Scent was seen in ancient times as a very important part of their religious and
daily routines. People burnt copious amounts of incense and bathed in various
oils and perfumes to make themselves more acceptable to the gods and
become more holy. Unfortunately, as the church came into power in the
Middle Ages, the study of olfaction became considered pagan and savage.
This view was carried right through until the twentieth century, and as a result
the area of olfaction is only now reaching the understanding we have of vision
or hearing.
Kerry Francis 43
It is my belief that through the work of companies, like the Disney
Imagineneers, producing fully immersive sensory experience and artists, such
as Tillotson, olfaction will gain the recognition it deserves. Through the novelty
technologies that are being produced with regards to scent, it will help people
gain a heightened olfactory awareness about the scents in the surrounding
environment. It is my hope that this awareness will open people up to the
natural scentscapes that exist in the natural world. With regards to Odorama,
unless it is used within an immersive context, for example, ‘Soarin’, it is not an
effective way of heightening the emotion within a film and just serves as a
distraction.
Scent is an extremely complex area of study, which even with today’s
technology people still do not fully understand every aspect of how it works
and why it affects them the way it does. However, as the knowledge in this
area increases, the use of scent in new media will transcend the trivial
gimmicks of today to provide people with a more emotional and fulfilling
relationship with the media they consume.
Kerry Francis 44
References
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