Koo Jeong A's Olfactory Installation ODORAMA CITIES Transforms Korean Pavilion at Venice Biennale

Koo Jeong A presents ODORAMA CITIES, an immaterial scent landscape at the Korean Pavilion for the 60th Venice Biennale, running from 20 April to 24 November. The project transforms 600 individual scent memories collected through a global open call into 17 fragrances, created in collaboration with Seoul-based perfumer nonfiction. This conceptual work explores ephemerality and altered perception, aiming to transcend national divisions by constructing a collective portrait of the Korean Peninsula through olfactory sensations. The artist's methodology, developed over three decades, includes phosphorescent skateparks, AR ice sculptures, and organic sonic installations that reassess the mundane. Koo Jeong A's first scent exhibition in 1996 used mothballs to celebrate transitional space, an element incorporated into the current project. Drawing from mathematician Georg Cantor's set theory and ideas from scientist Carlo Rovelli, the installation engages with multidimensional space and the nature of time. The work challenges fragmented national outlooks in the Giardini's pavilion system, proposing transnational unity through shared sensory experience. Visitors encounter a spectrum of scents representing diverse memories from people worldwide, regardless of Korean heritage.