GNAI Visual Synopsis: A visualization of the Odeuropa team meticulously annotating historical images and texts, training the AI system to recognize smell-related elements and creating an extensive database of olfactory heritage.
One-Sentence Summary
The article from Smithsonian Magazine discusses Odeuropa, an E.U.-funded research project aimed at capturing Europe’s olfactory heritage, showcasing the significance of smells in culture, unveiling a new encyclopedia and online database featuring over 2.5 million historical scent references and guiding institutions in incorporating olfactory storytelling into their exhibits. Read The Full Article
Key Points
- 1. Odeuropa Project: Funded by the European Union, Odeuropa aims to capture Europe’s olfactory heritage by creating an online database of smells from 16th- to early 20th-century Europe, showcasing the significance of smells in culture.
- 2. Encyclopedia of Smell History and Heritage: Odeuropa has officially launched its products, featuring a Smell Explorer and an Encyclopedia with approximately 120 scent stories, providing insight into how the past smelled and how people described, depicted, and experienced those smells.
- 3. Impact on Cultural Institutions: The project offers hands-on training to institutions in incorporating olfactory storytelling and working with scents in galleries, libraries, archives, and museums, along with a downloadable guide for creating sensory experiences.
Key Insight
The Odeuropa project not only preserves olfactory heritage but also provides a unique platform for understanding cultural and historical contexts through smell, while guiding cultural institutions in embracing olfactory storytelling to create immersive experiences.
Why This Matters
The exploration of Europe’s olfactory heritage through advanced AI technology not only enriches cultural understanding but also has practical applications in museum exhibits, historical research, and sensory education, paving the way for a deeper appreciation of the role scents play in shaping our past and present experiences.
Notable Quote
“We had many long conversations with our humanities and social science scholars, as well as with our chemical and perfume partners to make a model for smell moments that incorporate places, sentiments, attributes, etc.” – (quote from one of the project’s team members).
