The New Orleans Museum of Art will be hosting SCENTS AND SENSIBILITY: Perfume Bottles & Related Accessories from Antiquity to Present:
Just as young gentleman charmed the women in Jane Austin’s [sic] Sense and Sensibility, perfumes have inspired people for centuries. The designs of each unique bottle reflect history. Curator John Keefe, Curator of Decorative Arts, showcases the art of perfumery and the craftsmanship behind each scent’s unique case in Scents and Sensibility, on display on the New Orleans Museum of Art’s (NOMA) second floor June 23 - October 24, 2010.
Sense and Sensibility [sic] showcases 125 objects covering the history of the scent bottle from its ancient origins to the present day. Scents, or perfumes, have been a part of civilization for more than four-thousand years and have characterized every known civilization. “Scents and their containers have fascinated the world from Julius Caesar to Coco Chanel,” Keefe said.
The opening celebration, which is free to the public, will be on June 30 from 6 to 8 pm:
From 6-8 p.m., Hove Parfumeurs will demonstrate how their luxury French Quarter boutique produces unique scents using indiginous [sic] Creole materials.
A full cash bar featuring frozen "couture cosmos" will be available in honor of Chanel, Givency, Ballenciaga, [sic] Dior, and other couturiers highlighted within the exhibit.
Brennan's Courtyard Cafe will remain open as well, offering a selection of pastries, soups and coffee.
You can find more information at the Museum's Facebook page. (via press release)
Update ~ the amazing piece shown below is "Perfume flask in the form of a pig, 100-300 A.D., Tranparent pale yelllo green pinch together: i.e. non-lead glass: blown, applied, tooled and threaded. [sic] Roman empire: Syro-Palestine era." It is reportedly the most popular piece of glass in the museum's permanent collection.
oh FABULOUS!!
Would that I could go… especially as I am working on creating a small perfume museum myself. if anyone is attending will you let us know how it is? Thank you Robin for posting about this.
I hope someone will report back too!
DSH – speaking of history – I enjoy your Mille-Fleurs Bouquet fragrance very much! I have a sample of that and it is so soft and spicy! I have not tested the other “Perfumed Court” fragrances though. But they all read very lovely.
Will be in New Orleans the first weekend in September…will definitely try to stop by this.
Had already planned a trip to Hove and Bourbon French, too.
Lucky you — have fun!
Would love to see this…Maybe I could get away to see it over a long weekend. The last time I went to this museum was for a Degas exhibit. I haven’t been back to New Orleans since. It really is a unique city….great for people watching and stout coffee, and oh yeah…the food & music…so many things to distract oneself.
I adore New Orleans! Do go and tell us how the exhibit is.
What a great exhibit. Museums have been doing fashion, accessories, etc, in shows for a long time now. It is nice to see them include fragrance and bottles as an art too. It warms my heart to see the bottle of Bal a Versailles!!! How much fun!
Isn’t that gorgeous?? I want that box.
I’ll take the full bottle too
I concur – on the museum show, and on that oh-so-recognizable bottle of Bal!
Maybe it is time to arrange a visit home to NH… via New Orleans. It is one of my favourite cities and this exhibit sounds FAB. Please, someone go and report back!
Museums should do this more often.
Very interesting indeed. Thanks for the post.
Was just at the travelling couture exhibit (from Victoria & Albert museum, currently in Nashville), and it was fun for a perfume person to see the little bit of perfume that was incorporated.
But here is the focus on scent, and hooray for that. I am glad to see that local perfumer Hove will be part of the opening; while I have *yet* to have a chance to smell any of their offerings, I read about them with great interest. Good “blend” of local + topic, I think.
I had a chance to be in New Orleans today for work, but I declined, as I’m not a hot weather fan & have lots of family matters this weekend. However, I’m sorry to miss this exhibit – looks wonderful!
Is it “Scents & Sensibility” or “Sense”? If it’s the latter, fine, it has to do with Jane Austen. If it’s the former, it’s the most over-used unoriginal title that’s hackneyed in magazine headings about perfume! I would love to see this exhibit but alas, it’s so far away.
Did you ever get a report, Robin, on the two day event that included LT & TS? I think attendees were given a chance to smell long- forgotten fragrances.
I was going to say that: I have files full of articles headed ‘Scents & Sensibility’ and I bet every time the author or the editor went, ‘Hey, I’ve thought of this great title….’ LOL!
Ack, it is “Scents”, and sorry I did not notice they used both in their press release.
And no, I didn’t hear from anyone who went, sorry!
I am glad to see someone acknowledge that perfume is an art!
And I just turned down a chance to hit up New Orleans for a few days in early June, though honestly, I could drive there and back in a weekend, catch this exhibit, and get some brownie points with my family. ;D
Am I the only one who is appalled at the spelling and continuity errors in that press release? Come on people–I know that we are in the age of tweets and no one seems to care how we communicate these days, but please….it matters how you present yourself to a public that you are trying to woo. Never thought that I would say this, but thank you Sister Mary Adorable and all of the nuns who drilled proper usage into my head. I stll can’t spell, but at least I use a dictionary once in a while.
OK, off the soap box….the exhibit looks very interesting and I hope someone does report back. A reminder to those in the Mid-Atlantic region, the fragrance exhibit at Longwood Gardens is still up through the summer and is well worth the trip.
ITA. That press release is an absolute disgrace. Even if I could visit that museum, I probably wouldn’t want to. This kind of thing puts me off. I always think, ‘If they can’t be bothered to make an effort about this, what else can’t they be bothered about?’ Illiterate press releases, ad copy, product names, blogs – it’s all the same.
I did notice the errors, but I guess I am just used to it by now. You should see some of the memos and reports that go out in my workplace. My husband and I are always telling each other that we seem to be the only two people left who can spell or punctuate correctly. I agree, though, that an official press release should be better written. Maybe some employers should reserve one job position for finalists in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Thank you to those of you who commented on the degradation of English. I’m glad to be in your company.
I suppose “Making Scents” is another well-worn title for events, etc. Perhaps we need a contest for new article titles…?
Lazy weekend poll idea!! This could be almost as much fun as the haiku.
I love New Orleans, and now I want to go back more than ever. Where’s a winning lottery ticket when you need one????
That pig!!!!! I have a collection of pigs and of course that perked me right up. Talk about something unattainable.
Love that Bal a Versailles bottle and box, too. Last night I went to an event to honor Michael Jackson on the 1-year anniversary of his death (nothing somber, all dancing and revelry) and before I went I looked online to see if he had a favorite perfume – it was BaV! Fortunately thanks to Ann S I have a bit, so got to have my own way of honoring him, too!
Regarding the pig: I am constantly amazed by the skill and craftsmanship of the artisans in the ancient world. Particularly considering the tools and technology (or lack thereof) available to them, much of what they produced is truly astonishing.
WOW! I am THRILLED to hear that so many of you are interested in our exhibit! I am currently interning for the Museum and will be tweeting about the event tomorrow evening using my personal Twitter, @kakiread, and the Museum’s, @NOMA1910. I hope you will follow both to learn more about the exhibition’s unique pieces. There will be several journalists attending tomorrow’s opening celebration, and I would be more than happy to send links to any articles that they might produce…enjoy!!!