Smelling and smells are currently experiencing a boom not only in the contemporary arts. In science, too, researchers in psychology, medicine, and biology want to find out how smells control behavior or influence the biological processes of human beings and animals.

The Schering Stiftung took the shared interest of scientists, artists, and creatives in the topic of smell as an opportunity to hold a one-day interdisciplinary workshop. Five scientists, three artists, one curator, and one designer followed the invitation and presented their work to each other. The scientists were represented by Prof. Dr. Bettina Pause (Biological Psychology, HHU Düsseldorf), Dr. Silke Sachse (neurobiologist, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena), Prof. Dr. Dr. Hans Hatt (smell researcher, Ruhr University Bochum), Prof. Dr. Bill Hansson (Head of the Department of Evolutionary Neuroethology at Max-Planck-Institute for Chemical Ecology), and Prof. Dr. med. Thomas Hummel (head of Interdisciplinary Center “Smell and Taste,“ University Hospital Dresden). They met the artists Sissel Tolaas and Anna Virnich, the curator Annja Müller-Alsbach, as well as Mareike Bode and Chaveli Sivre from the Scent Club Berlin to engage in vivid discussions, share experiences, and initiate a productive dialogue. For impressions of the event, please visit our Picture Gallery.