Peter De Cupere

Bio

Peter De Cupere (b. 1970, Belgium), 'olfactory' artist lives and works in Antwerp.

Master in Fine Arts at the Higher Institute Sint Lucas, Brussels, and Laureate at the HISK - Higher Institute for Fine Arts, Antwerp, Inventor of the first scent piano, called olfactiano Peter De Cupere

About the olfactory works of Peter De Cupere

By exploiting the subjective, associative impact of smells, in combination with visual images, Peter De Cupere generates a kind of meta-sensory experience that goes beyond purely seeing or smelling. Plastic artist De Cupere paints with scents, produces olfactory objects, soap paintings and sculptures, creates video and live performances, makes three-dimensional drawings and builds poetic smell installations. Everyone who has ever smelt Peter De Cupere‘s work cannot fail to recognise that his works prompt quite a reaction. You either love it or you feel attacked via your nasal senses. If the latter is true it is often because the spectator adopts a reserved attitude at first as a result of being wary of the unknown. That is exactly why smells in art have been and are still positively avoided. People like to compare and want a return or recognition. This is difficult with smells because they act directly on the limbic system and don‘t give you the necessary time and chance to translate things like you do with „sight“. Smells act on your memory subconsciously and so you associate your own subjective feelings with a specific smell. Your attitude to the object is determined by the smell memory of a certain moment. Add then the combination with the visual aspect of the artwork and you get a mix that does not appear to be completely predictable. Alongside the pleasance of some smells there are also smells that warn us of danger though we do not always heed these indications because of habituation. If you cross the street there are many damaging smells present because of pollution: exhaust fumes, rotting processes from discarded foodstuffs, toxic fumes from asphalt and other building materials that are freed by heat from the sun, polluted rain, sewers, etc. But the normal city person has become used to all the exhaust fumes and other air-polluting substances.

Works

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Total overview of smell-installations and scent works see his official website

2007 Nanolove, exhibition nano-Nu organisation Muhka

2005 Airpolluter, smell-installation 2003 Smell-movie "Sniff Receptor"

2002 Black Beauty Smell happening

1997 - 2004 Olfactiano, the first scent piano

1999 Collection Smak, Museum of Contemprary art, Belgium

Education and Residency Programs

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2005-2006 Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris, France.

2000 Akademie der Künsten, Berlin, Germany.

1996-1999 Hisk - Higher Institute For Fine Arts, Flanders – Antwerp, Belgium

1994-1996 Fine arts Higher Institute Sint Lucas, Brussels, Belgium

1989-1993 Higher Institute PHL, Hasselt, Belgium

External links

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Official website of Peter De Cupere

The Olfactiano, the first scent piano

Kunstonline.info

Bibilios and articles about Peter De Cupere Art Forum Exhibition Books and art catalogues