Scents of Exile
Scents of Exile, site views olfactory public artwork as installed at various museums and galleries, 2019-present. The project consists of a freestanding hand sanitizing dispenser, an unsigned, unnumbered edition of scented hand sanitizer, and a corresponding relief print.
Details of Scents of Exile relief prints, rubber based ink on 118# cover, 14 x 11 inches, 2020-2021.
Details of Scents of Exile archive folios: United States, 2020-2021; Germany, 2021. Contents include document preservation binder, certificate of authenticity, 10 ml vials of hand sanitizer (not pictured), and a corresponding edition of prints. Partner institutions receive a certificate of authenticity signed and dated by the artist. For more information, visit: scentsofexile.com
Project Notes
Scents of Exile is an ongoing art project started in 2019 that bears witness to the immigrant experience, one person at a time (www.scentsofexile.com). For Scents of Exile, Goeltzenleuchter interviews refugees and other immigrants about their scent memories of home. Odors, which are ephemeral and fleeting, have a strong connection to place and often elicit vivid and emotional memories, a phenomenon known as the "Proust effect". Goeltzenleuchter uses the interviews as inspiration to create fragrances using cosmetic-grade materials. These fragrances are then embedded in hand sanitizer. Each Scents of Exile station consists of a freestanding hand sanitizer dispenser filled with scented hand sanitizer and a printed display summarizing the interviewee's story and scent memories.
Goeltzenleuchter intends for the Scent of Exile stations to be installed at public institutions for use by the public on a day-to-day basis. The goal is to raise awareness of the diversity of immigrant experiences and facilitate a dialogue. When a visitor sanitizes their hands, the fragrance is transferred to the visitor who will carry it with them after leaving the institution, taking the scent memory with them and becoming part of the artwork in a performative act.
The project began cross-sector collaboration between the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees and Sculpture Space, New York. It has since extended its reach across three countries, establishing partnerships with eleven cultural institutions.
