Monument of Odour—Forgotten Eros

In recent years, Yamauchi has presented stage work and installations focusing on smell. “Monument of Odour”, a piece made in collaboration with YCAM, is a performance and installation which makes the audience think about the relationship between individuals and society through body odour.

This performance depicts a speculative world that can be described as an “odourless society”, emerging as a result of excessively limiting smell produced by humans or objects. In this world, there is no fragrance to express oneself or smell to recall memory. How can people commemorate lost scents in such an environment?
The existence of scent brings about an unconscious boundary between people, despite today’s communities often requesting tolerance to accept others. “Monument of Odour” will share hints to think deeply about technology and ways of communication in our contemporary society through a unique experience designed around odour.