The Limits of Power: Accessibility in Perfumery

Saskia Wilson-Brown presents an overview of her research into accessibility in the field of perfumery at University College Dublin’s SmartLab, briefly covering touch-points hindering access to the tools and knowledge of scent-making and current efforts to expand perfumery from product to practice.

Saskia Wilson-Brown founded the non-profit Institute for Art and Olfaction in 2012 in order to foster
access and experimentation in perfumery. She went on to launch numerous programs designed to
promote independent practices with scent and open-source principles in perfumery, including the Art
and Olfaction Awards, Open Source Scent Culture, the IAO Library, Experimental Scent Summit,
and more. In 2019 she served as a visiting lecturer at the Royal College of Art in London, and in
2020 she was a Ballen Scholar at New Mexico Highlands University. In 2021, she started a PhD at
University College Dublin’s SmartLab, exploring the relationship between perfume, power, and
access.