Liquid Memories

at Wasserman Projects (Detroit) / May 13, 2022

———

Liquid Memories is an aural/scented interpretation of water as an infinite collection of memories along its journey through ever-evolving forms.

As audience members enter the space, the grounding bass notes of seaweed, Fenugreek, olive, and ginger set the tone, dispersed via a room fragrance of scented dry ice. As the first musical work Kringen begins, the bass notes are then layered with the heart notes of Nigella, Champaca, Choya Nakh, and Arina. Kringen, the Dutch term for "circles", is an aural reference to the ripples formed upon water from the throw of a stone. This rippling motif is implied throughout, in the form of the melancholy nostalgia of a calm rainfall to the swirling outpouring of infinitely overlapping circles.

Following an intermission, the top notes of Sumac, Jonquil, Cognac, and Elemi, are elevated as the final complement to the bass and heart notes. The top notes are paired with two works by Kelly Moran. Helix II relates to generational memory and the seemingly infinite and elegant helical strand of DNA and Water Music is an ode to water's undulating trance.

As the apex of bass, heart, and top notes are reached, the experience concludes with Solo Devil's Dance IV, an exciting and incessant dance of shimmering fire atop of water.

Audience members depart with small vials of the custom scents created by Sfumato Fragrances. These one-off olfactory souvenirs are an opportunity to relive this experience in the form of a scented memory long after the performance, much in the same way as listening or watching to documentation of this program may trigger complementary olfactory memories.

AUDIO-VISUAL DOCUMENTATION (CLICK BELOW)

SCENT/SOUND PAIRINGS