In the Wake of is a sensory exploration of what it means to be alive disguised as a manual on how to be a human. The iridescent hexagonal structure rotates to reveal six display boxes that correspond with different stages of life: Infancy, Childhood, Adolescence, Adulthood, Midlife, and Senescence. Each box contains a unique bottle filled with a custom-made scent reminiscent of that time period, and a booklet that articulates the experiences and memories common to that stage of life. The sigils found throughout are devised from the chemical compound structures of the scents. The bottles are constructed of materials that reflect the psychological states of those ages: paper pulp, wood, plastic, porcelain, concrete, and glass. To activate this kit, one must spin the case, select one display box at a time, open it, open a bottle, smell the scent, and read the corresponding booklet. These olfactory catalysts are meant to create an immersive space for reflection – a nostalgic haze, a contemplative cloud – while the haptic elements play on our fingertips.

This project was conceived, designed, and constructed by Chris Fritton and Keri Miki-Lani Schroeder. It was originally envisioned as a treatise on the neuroscience of memory and the neurobiology of smell. The idea was to foreground the olfactory and use it as the foundation for the text. This quickly blossomed into a project that engaged all five senses and became an existential, epistemological, and phenomenological meditation on life itself.

To develop the custom scents, Fritton and Schroeder collaborated with Saskia Wilson-Brown, Founder & Executive Director at The Institute for Art and Olfaction (IAO) in Los Angeles, CA , with assistance provided by IAO lab assistant Lucas Cuevas.