GERUCHSLANDSCHAFTEN

What happens to the smell of a city that has been characterized by the removal of people for decades? How does it change when people disappear? In her workshop, artist Alanna Lynch explores these questions together with the participants and distils a smell for the future.

Places and spaces can be understood through physical and material experiences. Smells are incredibly powerful: they can influence our thoughts, feelings and behavior, even if we are not aware of them. What does Wolfen actually smell like? While the town had a population of over 40,000 in 1990, it now has a population of just under 15,000. As the town has shrunk, not only has its appearance changed, but its smell has changed too. What can we learn about shrinking cities with the help of smells? What smells are there today where green spaces have replaced housing estates and bee meadows have replaced industrial areas?

In her workshop, artist Alanna Lynch invites us into Wolfen’s olfactory landscape.

All visitors are invited to bring along materials or objects that are harmless to health for distillation. Objects or things that carry scents from the past or present can also be brought along for the discussion round. The workshop will culminate in the distillation of various scents.