Scent Art.
Visualizing Scents.
We create scents that can be seen, touched, and eaten.
Our strength is our experience and expertise as olfactory artists. While smells and scents appeal to the emotions and are easily remembered, they are invisible and often go unnoticed even if you spend a lot of money on them. We visualize scents according to the characteristics of people who use their sense of sight as their main source of information, creating highly topical content that is easily picked up by SNS and the media.
Case 1: Room diffuser production
As a local specialty, we have developed a room diffuser made directly from Wintersweet flowers. We applied our original extraction technology. The result became a tax return gift from the hometown. It was a great opportunity to learn about the relationship between the region and fragrance. Thank you very much!
More than 20,000 Wintersweet flowers are planted in a garden in Yose, Matsuda-cho, Kanagawa Prefecture. Under the cold blue sky of early spring, the yellow flowers begin to bloom from tiny buds, and the air is filled with the fragrance of the flowers. The flowers collected by visitors who participated in the Wintersweet flower-picking experience are sent to the fragrance artists on the same day, and the result is a Wintersweet flowers room diffuser.
The fragrance is simple and elegant, sweet and gorgeous, and expresses the satoyama landscape as it is.
The diffuser is used by inserting two or three sticks provided in a bottle of diffuser solution.
The fragrance lasts approximately two months, but this will vary depending on the environment in which it is used, the number of sticks used, and other factors.
Client: Cafe Kafu, Matsuda-cho, Kanagawa, Japan
Contents: 1 x 50ml Wintersweet flowers room diffuser, 5 reed sticks
Place of origin: Japan
Hometown item price: 19,000 yen
Reference: Satofuru
2017
Case 2: Fragrance advice in olfactory sensor development
The deliverables won the Demonstration Award at Digital Olfaction Society. Congratulations to the winners!
Katsuya Ujimoto, Ricoh Company, Ltd., Japan demonstrated the first of a kind “Kouawase（香合せ) with Real Time Spectrometry”. This winning incense demonstration allows the digitalization of the gas composition of your favorite scent as a 3D spectrum image. Dr. Ujimoto and the team updated the Digital Olfaction Society that Ricoh aims to build digital services that convert gases and odors into data in real time to meet the demands of many different workplaces.
Dr. Ujimoto stated that: “Ricoh will combine the new technology with 360-degree image and voice recognition technology to digitize the information perceived by all five senses, thus delivering unique value to homes and workplaces.”
Client: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
November 2022
Case 3: Producing a Culinary Performance to Taste the Whole Scent of Nature on Ishigaki Island
This is a completely waste-free event, using plates made from leaves and chopsticks made from trunks, etc. The event is a great way to enjoy the natural aroma of Ishigaki Island. Philip was here as an intern. Thank you for a wonderful experience!
More details
Self-produced Project
Artist: Phillp Kohlmann
May 2018
Case 4: Aroma pairing – Pineapple
As a countermeasure against food loss, we proposed a pairing from the perspective of aroma, with the theme of pineapple, which is excessively available in Ishigaki Island, especially in summer. With the cooperation of the hotel’s top chefs, we composed the course and provided the recipes to the food and beverage industry on the island. Thank you very much to all the chefs and hotel staff!
More details
Client: Fusaki Beach Resort
Time: 2022
Case 5: Development of a model for scented souvenirs
We developed three scents (java long pepper, sagaribana, and soil after rain) and an olfactory experience kit, REMINI-SCENT, for a paper presentation by olfactory researchers on the themes of “wind and scent” and “near, middle, and far views of scent”. Thank you for this rare opportunity to collaborate with various fields!
Client: Yoko Iwasaki
REMINI-SCENT
Thesis and draft: Yoko Iwasaki (Saga Art College)
Olfactory design, concept and implementation: Maki Ueda
Graphic design, box design + assembly: Sumire Kobayashi @sumirekobayashi
Illustration: Kyoka Tanno @tanno_kyoka
Specification design and processing advice: Kiyotaka Kato, Tohoku Shigyo Co.
UV printing + laser cutting: Sanko Co.
Paulownia box production: Kami-Ancient Origami Box Store / Wood processing assistance: Tsuyoshi Horiguchi
Mini fan production: Makoto Ueda
Risograph: JAM Printing
Year 2022
Case 6: Production of premium novelty goods for hotel guests
In March 2018, we produced a “Star Scent” luggage tag to commemorate the Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park located in the Yaeyama Islands, Okinawa Prefecture, being recognized as the first “Starry Sky Reserve” in Japan. It was a nice illustration and well received. Thank you very much for this wonderful experiment!
Client: Art Hotel Ishigakijima
Illustration by Kinoha Sakai
2018
Case 7: Candle art exhibition in a hotel lounge
We were asked if we could create some kind of art exhibit at the bar to attract customers during the off-season. We planned a playful art exhibition in which each color was assigned a different fragrance, and the combined fragrance X was to be guessed like a quiz, to match the functionality and atmosphere of the bar lounge. Candles of each color were placed on each table. It became a comfortable space where we could stay forever. Thank you very much for the wonderful project!
Client: Art Hotel Ishigakijima
2017
Case 8: Olfactory art exhibition in a hotel gallery
I was surprised to hear that my aunt and uncle spent about an hour sniffing and dating, which was both surprising and heartwarming. Thank you very much!
Client: Hotel Emerald Isle Ishigakijima
May 2016
Case 9: Scent production for original brand candles
We created and offered the fragrances “Shell Ginger”, “Silk Jasmine”, and “Citrus Depressa” from Ishigaki Island. Soy wax is the speciality of this product. The container is also Ryukyu glass. Thank you very much for your wonderful work!
Client: Private Client
Sold by: Kayak Ishigakijima
2017 – 2018
Case 10: Scent development of deodorant lotion for scalp
“I want a deodorant lotion, but with a subtle fragrance. “It is a deodorant lotion, but I want it to have a subtle fragrance that doesn’t interfere with the natural deodorant effect. This was our request. We focused on the following points.
– Avoid masking with a strong fragrance.
– Do not rely solely on the cool, minty sensation that is often associated with mint.
– Make full use of fragrances that have deodorant effects.
– We have thoroughly tested and confirmed with our own body odor scents that they do not interfere with (rather, help) the deodorant effect of the base material.
– By using all natural fragrances, we clearly state the ingredients and ensure transparency (i.e., we do not mislead with the ingredient name “fragrance”).
– Alcohol-free
We have created a wonderful product in cooperation with the OEM. Thank you and congratulations to Mr. Nishitani for this interesting opportunity!
REED PEOPLE
Client: Mr. Nohto Nishitani
Year: 2023
Case 11: Scenting a dance performance
PERFUMUM” is a collaboration with the best belly dance studio in Japan, and is based on the theme of the fragrances of the seven goddesses. About 20 different scents were created in a multi-layered and multi-faceted way by using incense burners and dancers’ props to perfume the space. No complicated mechanical devices were used in this analog production. Many audience members were moved to tears during the final stage. It was a special time and space where everyone shared the happiness and excitement that fragrance gives. I would like to do it again!
Cliant: Ruhani Bellydance Arts
Year 2014
Case 12: Advisory contract for new fragrance business
I want to start a new business with fragrances! After a year and a half of research and discussion, a startup (SCENTMATIC) was completed. We are happy to see the progress that has been made since then. Thank you very much!
Cliant: Scentmatic Inc.
Year: 2018-2019
Many other examples:
- Scent installation at the anniversary party (September 2020, Mazda France, Paris)
- Scent art exhibit at the hotel (November 2020, by Fusaki Beach Resort)
- Advice on building a private guesthouse from a scent perspective. (Private client, Ishigaki Island, 2019)
- Skin care product fragrance concept and formulation. （2010, Inframince, Inc. _tilde）
Olfactory Workshop Offerings
We offer educational and welfare olfactory workshops using artistic methods for children, adults, and any industry. Please contact us for team building and other useful information.
Case 1: Incense making with island materials
Client: Ishigaki City, Warabato, Ishigaki Shokokai Sanbashi Market, Tokyo Design Week, Wakuwaku End-of-Life Fair
Time: 2015-
Making SDG’s Incense with Sawdust from Ryukyu Pine Wakuwaku End-of-Life Fair (Sponsored by Ryukyu Shimpo) 2024.5.18.
Case Study 2: Scented Candle and Lantern Workshop
Client: Ishigaki City Star Festival
Time: 2017
Case 3: On-site perfumery workshop
So-called perfumery workshop to create fragrances with various perfumes. Training to improve sensitivity and intuition while being healed by fragrances. We have had companies incorporate this into their training programs.
クライアント：Scentmatic 社様
2020年8月
Case 4: Scent x Words Team Building Workshop
Participants work in teams of three or four to discuss the direction of the rose perfume, express the fragrance in words, prepare the fragrance, give it a title, and compare and critique it with other groups at an exhibition. The participants will experience the entire process of creating a rose. This popular workshop has been held in the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Nagoya, and in academia (Royal Netherlands Institute of Fine Arts, Keio University, etc.).More Detais
Many other case studies:
Art Thinking” workshop for business people, olfactory version 2021.11. @Shibuya QWS
Kaoru Soap Bubble Workshop (organized by NPO Shima no Yochoen) 2018.08.
Tundami Festival 2017
Games for the Sense of Smell (WS for industry professionals in Tokyo organized by Loftwork) 2016.04.
Examples of fragrances developed (excerpts)
- Cold aroma, warm aroma
- Red wine, Pinot Noir
- Cherry blossom (Japan)
- Piperti (Ishigaki Island)
- Sagaribana (Ishigaki Island)
- Marnie (Ishigaki Island)
- Kuchinashi (Ishigaki Island)
- Ryukyu Pine (Ishigaki Island)
- Water Lily (Ishigakijima)
- Moon Tachibana (Ishigaki Island)
- Hamayu (Ishigaki Island)
- Yakagoki (Ishigaki Island)
- Sanpin/Jasmine (Ishigaki Island)
- Shekwasha (Gekko) (Ishigakijima Island)
- Seekwasa (Ishigakijima)
- Star Fragrance (Ishigakijima)
- Red Clay (Ishigaki Island)
- Mud (Rotterdam, the Netherlands)
- WAUBAI (Kanagawa, Japan)
- Ryukyu Pine (Ishigakijima)
- Iju (Ishigaki Island, Japan)
COACHING
Now that there are a lot of artists making olfactory art works, I receive a lot of questions daily from all over the world on extraction method for making installations. Every case is different. If you need my advise, I’m happy to help you out, but with a little fee to continue supporting you all in sustainable way. Please purchase the advisory ticket here and contact us.
