Wandering through the Tuileries Garden during Matter and Shape salon 2026, I found myself immersed in one of the most captivating experiences of the design calendar: the Matter and Shape Olfactory Signals booth. This wasn’t just another fragrance showcase—it was a carefully curated portal where scent transcends its traditional role and becomes a language of artistic expression.
Olfactory Signals: the architecture of scent
Olfactory Signals, curated by Sissel Tolaas and Emma McCormick this year, is a platform that treats fragrance as an artistic medium. The booth itself was designed as a sculptural installation—a large white corrugated tube wound through the space like a spatial guide, inviting visitors through different scent experiences. The minimalist design with clean lines and blue platforms created an intimate, focused environment. Rather than overwhelming visitors with sensory excess, the installation guided slow, deliberate exploration—respecting scent as an artistic tool equal to visual art.
The stories within: brands that captivate
Speaking with the creators and founders at the booth was the most valuable part of the experience. Each brand isn’t just a fragrance—it’s a complete world built around a specific idea, memory, or artistic inquiry. Understanding the context behind each scent changes how you experience it.
Roelen: Founder David Roelen creates fragrances from personal memories and experiences. For example, the perfume The Door is dedicated to bouncers from Berlin’s most famous club.
Notes de Bas de Paje: This Parisian brand created by the couple Alice Gensse and Pierre-Junior Menana treats fragrance like literature—each scent is a footnote to a larger story. What particularly fascinated me was Carambolage, born from an automobile accident transformed into scent. The book-shaped packaging extends this literary concept perfectly.
Naomi Goodsir: An Australian designer who started as a couture milliner, Naomi treats perfumery as another medium of artistic expression. What strikes most is her restraint: since launching in 2012, Naomi has created only a handful of fragrances, believing in quality over quantity.
Arpa Studios: Here, fragrance becomes synesthetic art. Each perfume arrives encased in a cast glycerin shell designed by Brian Thoreen and founder Barnabé Fillion. The glass bottles, custom-blown by artist Jochen Holz, turn the application ritual itself into performance. Applying Arpa fragrance is not merely wearing scent—it is a tactile, visual, olfactory experience compressed into gesture.
Ecdysis: What began as an artistic exploration by artist Emma McCormick Goodhart of caves as sensory landscapes, was eventually translated into wearable fragrance Cave, bringing the research directly onto skin.
Octo: This emerging cosmetic brand brings fresh perspectives to skincare. The octagonal glass bottle—mirroring the eight-ingredient philosophy—becomes a design statement: form follows formula. All botanicals are sustainably sourced from Brazil through fair-trade agreements with indigenous communities, making the forest itself part of the skincare ritual.
Nippon Kodo: Four centuries of Japanese incense mastery converge in these bamboo sticks. What distinguishes Nippon Kodo is their proprietary technology: bamboo sticks infused with natural aromatic oils that produce less smoke when burned, allowing the pure fragrance to shine through.
Ahare: This Japanese brand treats home fragrances as a tool for connection, transforming the domestic space into a sanctuary where intention meets aroma.
Seed Arte: Founded by Melania Chokron, Seed Arte translates classical mythology into wearable art. Her perfume Leda draws from ancient Greek myth through botanical composition. The bottle’s sculptural wing element detaches to become a wearable ring, merging fragrance, jewelry, and mythology into one experience.
Manuel Mathieu: Artist and designer Manuel Mathieu creates fragrances where the boundary between perfume and sculpture dissolves. Each sculptural glass bottle is a work of art—organic, hand-finished forms that prioritize design as much as composition.
Abel: Founded by former winemaker Frances Shoemack, Abel pioneers 100% natural fragrances using biotechnology to create molecules without fossil fuels.
The ritual of fragrance
As I left the booth, I carried not just scent, but the stories behind it. Hearing directly from the people behind these brands, their inspirations, their process, their vision—made clear why storytelling matters. Walking through Matter and Shape Olfactory Signals reminded me that fragrance is never just fragrance—it is the medium, the physical embodiment of memory, emotion, and artistic vision.
Explore more olfactory and artistic destinations in our Design collection, from hidden boutiques to immersive exhibitions.
