LE JARDIN RETROUVÉ — THE PERFUME FOREST INSTALLATION, SHANGHAI
project overview
INSIDE ONE OF SHANGHAI’S VAST GLASS PAVILIONS, LE JARDIN RETROUVÉ AND I CREATED A SENSORY INSTALLATION THAT TRANSFORMED A GREENHOUSE INTO A DREAMLIKE “PERFUME FOREST.” SUNLIGHT, GREENERY AND TOWERING NEO-RENAISSANCE BANNERS BLENDED INTO A SURREAL, IMMERSIVE WORLD WHERE VISITORS COULD PHYSICALLY WANDER THROUGH EACH FRAGRANCE.
Concept & Execution
THE INSTALLATION GREW FROM ONE CENTRAL IDEA: PERFUME IS A LANDSCAPE OF EMOTIONS — AND YOU MUST WALK THROUGH IT TO FEEL IT. TOGETHER WITH CLARA FEDER (ARTISTIC DIRECTOR & CO-CREATOR), WE ENVISIONED PERFUMES NOT AS OBJECTS ON SHELVES BUT AS LIVING GATES. EACH FRAGRANCE BECAME A TOWERING BANNER PAINTED IN A CONTEMPORARY, RENAISSANCE-INSPIRED MANNER: SERENE FACES, SYMBOLIC GESTURES, AND HANDS REACHING OUT, INVITING VISITORS DEEPER INTO THE GARDEN.
I CREATED THE ENTIRE VISUAL SYSTEM BY HAND — ALL CHARACTERS, FLOWERS, GESTURES AND SYMBOLIC ELEMENTS ILLUSTRATED ON MY TABLET — BUT MY ROLE EXTENDED FAR BEYOND THE ARTWORK. WE'VE DESIGNED THE ARCHITECTURAL ENTRANCE, PLANNED THE SPATIAL FLOW, AND DEVELOPED EVERY PRINTED COMPONENT OF THE INSTALLATION: BANNERS, PANELS, SCENT-STATION GRAPHICS, POETRY INSERTS, AND THE FULL VISUAL LOGIC OF THE GAME.
WORKING CLOSELY WITH CLARA FEDER, I SHAPED NOT ONLY THE VISUAL TONE BUT ALSO HOW THE SPACE BEHAVED: HOW PEOPLE ENTERED, DISCOVERED, INTERACTED, AND FINALLY LEFT THEIR IMPRINT. IT BECAME A TRUE HYBRID — ILLUSTRATION, SPATIAL DESIGN, PRINTED MATTER AND STORYTELLING WOVEN INTO ONE CONTINUOUS EXPERIENCE.
Conclusion
THE INSTALLATION REDEFINED HOW A HERITAGE PERFUME HOUSE CAN SPEAK IN A CONTEMPORARY WORLD: NOT THROUGH SHELVES OR LEAFLETS, BUT THROUGH EMOTIONAL LANDSCAPES, ILLUSTRATED WORLDS AND PUBLIC INTERACTION.
IT PROVED THAT PERFUMERY CAN BE PARTICIPATORY, PLAYFUL, AND ARTISTICALLY AMBITIOUS WITHOUT LOSING THE INTIMACY OF SCENT. LE JARDIN RETROUVÉ GAINED A FULLY IMMERSIVE PUBLIC IDENTITY, AND VISITORS LEFT WITH A TANGIBLE MEMORY — A PETAL CARRYING THEIR OWN HANDWRITTEN EMOTION. THIS PROJECT BRIDGED ART, STORYTELLING AND COMMERCE, TURNING A GREENHOUSE IN SHANGHAI INTO A TEMPORARY UNIVERSE OF POETRY.
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