Review: Parfums d’Orient at the Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris
Left: Morgan Holdsworth, Right: Nada Naya Nemer.
Exhibited by the Institut Du Monde Arabe in Paris, Parfums D’Orient was an exhibition that covered the origins of perfume from the Middle Eastern region through multiple lenses of fashion, art, photography, food and of course, scent. Nada Naya Nemer (British-Palestinian) and Morgan Holdsworth (British) review the exhibition from their individual perspectives - one being new to the tradition and the other who views it with nostalgia.
Nada Naya Nemer
Exhibited from September 2023 until March 2024, Parfums D’Orient was a must-see exhibition. The interactive nature of the show made absorbing knowledge about the history of perfume - which could be overwhelmingly informative - seem engaging and approachable. The exhibition greets the viewer with a huge screen playing a scenic, David Attenborough-esque montage showcasing where ingredients for perfume originate from: rose petals from Oman, frankincense from Yemen and musk from Serbia. Accompanied by calming, ambient music featuring the sound of wind chimes, the video curves round a wall and takes you to the first interactive section concentrating on scent.
From left to right: Morgan Holdsworth trialling the jasmine scent, introductory video to the exhibition, Nada Naya Nemer trialling the rose scent.
Interactive features that you can smell are some of the stand-out aspects of the show, an example of this being the cylindrical incubators filled with petals of different flowers traditionally used in musks, ouds and perfumes from the region. Pressing the button triggers the machine to start making the petals swirl around, (which made me almost think of indoor skydiving but for the petals), and in turn, as you lower your nose to what I describe to be a ‘smelling plate’, scents of rose and jasmine are wafted towards the viewer. For me, the scents are nostalgic, making me think of my mum who has a particular affinity for jasmine notes in her perfumes. Displayed on the opposite walls is corresponding imagery - photographs taken by contemporary photographers. One series titled ‘Rose Mountain’ by Eman Ali is dedicated to Djebel Akhadar in Oman, where flowers are produced for the production of perfume. Similarly, in the next photo series, ‘Cueillette dans les hauteurs du Moyen Atlas’ by Denis Dailleux, the artist documents the production of rose petals in Morocco’s Draa Valley. In the middle of the room, the floor is covered by a traditional floral Persian carpet, accompanied by text that explains how during the Irani Safavid dynasty, floral carpets were a regular feature that reflected their heritage. Already in the introductory room you are immersed in history, contemporary art and film, absorbing information through different mediums and senses.
From left to right: ‘Rose Mountain’ by Eman Ali, interactive bakhoor installation, display cabinet of artefacts for traditional Arab perfume, ‘Cueillette dans les hauteurs du Moyen Atlas’ by Denis Dailleux.
The use of film is integrated throughout the exhibition, providing a break from reading and smelling. ‘Shedding Skin’ by Yumna Al-Arashi, for me, was one of the most striking visual elements of the show. Soft and sultry, the short film shows the traditional Middle Eastern ritual of hammam, whilst also addressing the idea of cultural appropriation and the lasting effects of colonialism - a topic similar to the dissertation that I recently wrote. Looking around, many other people stopped in their tracks to watch it too, making it one of the most arresting aspects of Parfums D’Orient. Ideas that I also explored in my dissertation were manifested themselves in the photography of Majida Khattari, who explores the representation of Arab women in orientalist iconography.
From left to right: ‘Shedding Skin’ by Yumna Al-Arashi, rose bud garments by Reem Al-Nasser, a projection that shows traditional Arab culture when inviting a guest to your house.
There is so much more I could write about this exhibition - the nostalgic smells of saffron and agarwood that remind me of my uncle or the bakhoor my mum burns at home, or the wall of tagine crockery where you can also smell the ingredients of the traditional dish, displayed alongside a video where a mother is making stuffed vine leaves, which is a staple in our home every summer. As a fashion lover, to see wedding garments made out of jasmine buds by Reem Al-Nasser, or the collection of jewellery on display enhanced my visit at this exhibition and helped to keep me engaged. All in all, Parfums D’Orient was a striking exhibition, particularly for those in the diaspora who seek to understand their heritage further.
Morgan Holdsworth
We attended Parfums D’Orient in the final few weeks before the exhibit ended in mid March 2024, however the exhibition proved itself as one of the greatest highlights of our Paris trip. The show walks you through the process of perfume making, covering a myriad of aspects in an engaging yet educational way. Beginning the exhibition, you are directed towards two large screens simultaneously playing clips flicking between raw perfume materials alongside their country of origin.
From left to right: Soap made out of olive oil, introductory video on the origin of perfume ingredients, display of perfume bottles from the MENA region.
Following this experience for the eyes, you are then invited to smell these ingredients yourself with the press of a button, releasing scent from the concentrated perforated boxes. I particularly enjoyed the focus on floral scents forming the next section of the exhibit. Attendees waited to watch the trio of flower petals (rose, jasmine and sweet pea) in large clear cylinders swirl with the press of a button, whilst also releasing the corresponding smell from just below. Taking a break from the brightly illuminated show, visitors are briefly submerged into darkness to wander past large cases of midnight blooming jasmine, a flower emblematic of Arab gardens. Smell continues to form a vital part of this section, where you come across a circular table where scents are layered and built together, appearing like something straight from the mind of Roald Dahl. I found each scent new and inviting, however, I struggled to place any sense of familiarity. However, this anticipation created new levels of excitement towards a world I hadn't yet been immersed in.
From left to right: Midnight jasmine garden, display of clear perfume bottles filled with images of Egyptian actors and singers, arrangement of perfume bottles.
The context, and subsequent importance, of perfumes in the Arab world was introduced in the next stage of the exhibition. I enjoyed learning about the ritualistic aspect to perfumes, the way that giving someone a scent was seen as a great act of love. Two rituals in particular which the exhibition touched on were perfumes in the context of preparing for making love, but also the role of smell in getting clean. Vigamin Al-rawd Al Attir Fi Nuzhat Al-Khawâtir, a 15th Century piece of literature from Tunisia, discusses the importance in preparing a space for love and how ‘scented smoke and floral waters’ would invite your wife to bed. The other ritualistic behaviour felt exceptionally topical, as my Arabic word of the day during our Paris trip was Na'eeman. Clips of naked women being washed by each other (hammam) played in front of a large tower of olive oil soaps. The film revealed the intimate level of care in these bathhouses, how individualistic their treatment is, forming this deeply personal bond in being cleaned.
I thoroughly enjoyed Parfums D’Orient, engaging in an entirely new world through all of the senses. I loved how the exhibition ended by inviting attendees to place their hand into a window within the wall, dropping perfume into your palm. The smell lingered throughout the rest of our day, only leaving once I had my own ritualistic bathroom routine that evening. However, what was not washed away was the new found appreciation for the rich culture of Arabian perfumes, set within their important cultural contexts. We reflected on this exhibition throughout the trip, using it as a point of reference for all other experiences and as I write this back in Nottingham, I still long for the feeling of being warmly invited to be entirely immersed in something new and exciting.