SIX SCENTS: THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS

AFTER THE TRIUMPH OF THEIR FIRST SET OF FRAGRANCES, SERIES ONE, SIX SCENTS GOT THEIR NOSES STUCK IN TO CREATING NEW WAYS OF TANTALISING THE SENSES.

AGENT2 Magazine’s Jennifer Butler speaks to Kaya Sorhaindo about uncovering the lost art of engaging with perfumes, and how creativity with a conscience has inspired the support of designers.

Kaya has a very strong sense of what story she is telling with the perfumes he creates. His recent exhibition at the Markt Scope Art Show in New York was more than just a viewing for a latest line of fragrances. Visitors were encouraged to interact with the garments and fragrances, even with some people requesting to try on pieces right off the mannequin, politely being refused by curator and supporter of Six Scents Diane Pernet.

The experience is elevated by the designers that apply their talents to these works of art. The project involves bringing artists together from two completely different disciplines. Kaya explains what inspired this concept, “Scent has always been an area of fascination for me. I first thought about the project purely as a multi-sensory exhibition experience; however after discussing with my team we decided to build the experience into a product. Bringing designers and perfumers together is not new, however the type of designers that we commission are quite interesting. Although these designers are somewhat internationally recognised, they would never do a mass market fragrance for a number of reasons. Therefore we wanted to give them an opportunity to apply the ideas that define their collection to a totally different artistic discipline and in doing so they are not only providing a glimpse into of who they are as individuals, but also providing an opportunity for a larger audience to connect with their clothing on a more personal level.”

One of the artists commissioned for Series Two is Japanese artist Azuma Makoto. He has created a series of botanical sculptures for the collection along with a number of video pieces. Every designer was asked to imagine a place and an experience. With the packaging and films the whole experience is slowed down, you interact and contribute to the unfolding of the fragrance story.

Kaya defines the collection as a way to appreciate our surroundings, “The idea was to allow people to share in this experience or fantasy and to help preserve these experiences. Without nature there is no art, for many years artist have been inspired by nature and through the collection we tried to encourage people to appreciate and preserve the thing that inspires us most”.

Kaya has incorporated his love of nature and sustainability by supporting charities through her work. This time around she choose Pro- Natura. Kaya has an unlimited amount of positive things to say about this worthwhile charity. They are one of the most effective green charities basically because they are giving poor people alternative solutions to make money, as opposed to chopping down their forests or overfishing for example. It is amazing, because it is an organization working from the bottom up. It’s not only helping to create environmental solutions, but also symbiotically creating economic and social solutions as well.”

There is such a wide spectrum of people who buy these fragrances. Production was limited to 2,000 bottles per perfume, making them somewhat inclusive, but not producing too much as it would not seem as special. If you buy these fragrances you are genuinely looking for more out of a product, an experience.

Kaya has big plans for the future and high expectations of the fragrances. “The beauty of Six Scents is that it has a little bit for everyone, several touch points and things that you can connect with. This allows us to present the collection in a diverse range of shops from museums and fashion boutiques, to interior design shops, hotels and apothecaries. We are very much committed to the multi-sensory experience, so we will continue to explore new ways for people to appreciate, interpret and engage with fragrance.”

Words Jennifer Butler  Images Six Scents