2025 Festival
From 10 to 12 October 2025, Creative Factory Veldze in Riga hosted the Scent Art Festival, one of the first festivals to feature an open invitation for contributions to scent expanded art. The festival brought together 43 participants from Latvia, Argentina, Norway, China, New Zealand, Finland, Portugal, Greece, and Germany, presenting 20 exhibited works and 18 live performances. The programme included scent–sound compositions, scented performances, aroma-dance works, olfactory poetry readings, cross-modal lectures, an aromagraphy workshop, a teahouse, and a guided scent walk through Riga.
The festival focused on integrating scent into visual art, music, literature, dance, and performance, offering an immersive multisensory programme of exhibitions, performances, workshops, lectures, and a scent walk through Riga. The main supporter was the creative factory Veldze, and the festival was fully self-funded, with artists covering their own expenses.
Participants
DJ Arch, Nomal Babyy, Andreas Barth, Elīne Buka, DJ Dani, IFF designers, Liene Dobičina, Kate Dudure, Helias Dzimoulakis, Elīza Eikerte, Semane Elīna, Erik Fooladi, Emīļa Grinberga, Shenbai Hu, Santa Igaune, Yan Ke, Santa Kristiāna Krūze, Solvita Lazdāne, Diana Lelis, Katrīna Levāne, Max Ma, Ieva Matveja, Bruno Mesz, Sandris Mūriņš, Amanda Nīcmane, Artūrs Petersons, Maria Miguel Pratas, Eeva-Liisa Puhakka, Kristīna Elettra Rubīne, Ur Sæbø, Annija Sprīvule, Jurģis Šķilters, Kristiāna Šuksta, Sebastian Tedesco, Sabīne Vekmane, Anna Vilāne, Maria Zegna, and Bastian Zimmerman.
The exhibition was curated in consultation with Arnis Balčus, installed by Artūrs Arnis, and Junyu Wen curated the Chinese participants’ works. Lectures explored multisensory perception (Jurģis Šķilters), olfactory mechanisms (Sandris Mūriņš), and scent–music interactions (Bruno Mesz). Bastian Zimmerman presented the “Scent Music” issue of the Berlin-based magazine Positionen. Amanda Nīcmane led the aromagraphy workshop demonstrating the “Scent Camera,” while Arturs Voinovs provided technical support and Anna Hipotija curated the festival teahouse. The volunteers helped prepare exhibition space.
Bruno Mesz (AR), Smell Organ (2025).
Selected Projects
Solvita Lazdāne (Instagram: @solvita.lazdane) & Laura Lapiņa (Instagram: @magiskarealiste), Scent Walk “Autumn Riga”, 2025
Maria Zegna (Instagram: @mariazegna) & Erik Fooladi (Instagram: @erikfooladi), What Does Survival Smell Like?, Performance, 2025
Helias Dzimoulakis (Instagram: @heliasdzimoulakis), Feasts of Zagreus: Let the Night Reign, 2025
Katrīna Levāne (Instagram: @lunaklev), Forest Floor (Encore), 2025
Sandris Mūriņš (Instagram: @sandrismurins) & Amanda Nicmane, Basics of Aromagraphy, Lecture and Scent Camera Demonstration, 2025
Ieva Matveja (Instagram: @ievamatveja), Elīza Eikerte (Instagram: @elizaeikerte) & Diana Lelis (Instagram: @lelispoems), 1.11 O, Performance, 2025
Erik Fooladi (Instagram: @erikfooladi) & Andreas Barth (Instagram: @farmorhuset_musikk), Attack & Release #2, 2025
Ur Saebe (Instagram: @olaursabo), Scented Music “Gelukt”, 2025
DJ Archio (Instagram: @archio_), DJ Danni (Instagram: @danii_liove) & Erik Fooladi (Instagram: @erikfooladi) — Aroma DJ Night, 2025
Annija Sprīvule (Instagram: @annija_sprivule), The Scent of Memories, 2025
Sandris Mūriņš (Instagram: @sandrismurins), Kate Dudure (Instagram: @ira_nava) & Santa Igaune (Instagram: @santa.igaune), Smelling Gender, 2025
Jo Burzynska (Instagram: @joburzynska), Osmic Resonance, 2025
Ēvalds Lazarevičs (Instagram: @evald.lazarevich) & Sandris Mūriņš (Instagram: @sandrismurins), Aromagraphical Notes of Latvian Identity, 2025
Ieva Vilciņa (Instagram: @nisperochirimoya) & Sandris Mūriņš (Instagram: @sandrismurins), Aroma Dancing, Experience, 2025
Liene Lintere (Instagram: @lienisstienis), Vomit.jpg, 2025
Jurģis Sķilteris, On the Links Between Olfaction and Other Senses, Lecture, 2025
Bruno Mesz (Instagram: @bmesz) & Sebastian Tedesco (Instagram: @tedescosebastian), Love’s Labours Lost?, Multisensory Tasting, 2025
Santa Kristiāna Krūze (Instagram: @sanyabbyy) & IFF Scent Designers, Fragments from the Historic Scents Collection, 2025
Normal Babyy (Instagram: @normalbabyy_official), I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!, 2025
Program
-
18:00 Lectures (RAA SPACE)
Minilecture: “On the Links Between Olfaction and Other Senses” by Prof. Jurgis Šķilteris.
Basics of Aromagraphy by Sandris Mūriņš and Amanda Nīcmane.
19:00 Guided Exhibition Tour (RAA SPACE, Boiler Room, Small Hall).
20:00 Video Screening: “History of Movement” scented with a smell organ (Maria Zegna, Bruno Mesz, Sebastian Tedesco). RAA SPACE.
21:00 Performance with scent-music installation by Erik Fooladi & Andreas Barth. Small Hall. -
9:00 Co-Presence Ritual Performance: "1.11 O" by Diana Lelis, Elīza Eikerte, and Ieva Matveja. Boiler Room.
11:00 Scent Music Lecture & Performance: Bruno Mesz will discuss Scent Music, followed by a performance of "Chaosmosis" featuring Mesz on the smell organ & Liene Dobičina on flute. Management Hall.
12:00 Scent Music: "Gelukt" by Ur Saebe. RAA SPACE.
13:00 Scent Music: "I can't believe it's not butter!" by Normal Babyy. Management Hall.
13:50 Lecture Dance Performance: "Aroma Dancing" by Ieva Vilciņa & Sandris Mūriņš. Meeting at RAA SPACE.
14:50 Lecture Dance Performance: "Aroma Dancing" by Ieva Vilciņa & Sandris Mūriņš (Repeat). Meeting at RAA SPACE.
16:00 Scent Music: "Gelukt" by Ur Saebe. RAA SPACE.
17:00 Scent Music Media Showcase by Bastian Zimmerman. Management Hall.
18:00 Aroma & Music Improvisation Session featuring Bruno Mesz, Erik Fooladi, Andreas Barth (Norway), and other festival artists, with the smell organ. RAA SPACE.
19:00 Scent Tasting Experience with the smell organ: "Love's Labours Lost?" led by Bruno Mesz & Sebastian Tedesco. RAA SPACE.
20:00 DJ Danni. Management Hall.
21:00 DJ Archi. Management Hall. -
9:00 AM Scent Excursion around Riga: A guided walk with Solvita Lazdāne. Meeting at RAA SPACE.
11:00 Lecture: “Olfaction and Scent Recording” by Sandris Mūriņš and Amanda Nīcmane.
12:00 Scent Excursion with performance: “Memories reservoir” by Anna Vilāne. Meeting at RAA SPACE.
13:00 Performance: "The Scent of Memories" by Annija Sprīvule. RAA SPACE.
14:00 Scent Excursion with performance: “What does survival smell like?” by Maria Zegna. Meeting at RAA SPACE.
15:00 Poetry Reading: "Kafijas pupiņas dvēselei" by Kristiāna Šuksta. RAA SPACE.
16:00 Scent Tasting Experience with the smell organ: "Love's Labours Lost?" led by Bruno Mesz & Sebastian Tedesco. RAA SPACE.
17:00 Poetry Reading and Performance: "top notes: salt, sand, ashes, tears" by Maria Miguel Pratas.