Artist Sissel Tolaas is holding a copy of the Smell Edition that she created for PIN–UP.
PIN–UP SMELL EDITION
A Collectible Edition Created by Sissel Tolaas
by PIN–UPVideo by Margaux Esclapez for PIN–UP
Artist and smell researcher Sissel Tolaas has collaborated with PIN–UP to create a unique, collectible Smell Edition.
Tolaas introduces her concept of a ”content hack“ with an eight-piece, nano-embedded smell sticker system dispersed throughout the magazine. Readers are invited to peel off these stickers and reassemble them on the cover to form an image. The reconstructed image, photographed by artist Lengua during a shoot for PIN–UP, depicts the containers used to store smell molecules in Tolaas's Smell Research Lab in Berlin.
For the Smell Edition, Tolaas explores the concept of in-betweens and nothingness by pairing a blank cover of PIN–UP’s Under Construction issue with the molecular reconstruction of the smell of ozone in the air.
The cover of the Smell Edition features textured, reflective text that is only visible when held up to the light
Sissel Tolaas’s work and research merge her expertise in organic chemistry, mathematics, visual art, and linguistics, resulting in a vast archive of up to 20,000 smell molecules and smell constructs meticulously cataloged over 25 years. Her recent projects include recording and reconstructing smell molecules preserved in fragile garments and objects from the Metropolitan Museum Costume Institute’s archives, creating a smell molecule library for Balenciaga, and reviving and preserving ancient smells from places such as Pompeii and Bahrain. Through her research, Tolaas redefines our understanding of the sense of smell, air, aerosols, molecules, bacteria, and viruses — capturing authentic smells on both micro and macro levels and making them continuously accessible through her extensive archive.
Read Whitney Mallett’s article on Tolaas's practice here.
Order PIN–UP’s Smell Edition here.
The PIN–UP Smell Edition, now available in limited quantities at the link below.