Sissel Tolaas, born 1961 in Stavanger (Norway), studied mathematics, chemistry, linguistics and art at the universities of Oslo, Moscow, Leningrad, Oxford and Princeton. She explores odours and the use of them in art. Working between industry, science and art, Tolaas’ works have been shown internationally at major exhibitions such as the Documenta 13 and Sao Paulo, Liverpool, Kochi, and Venice Biannales and she has consulted for companies ranging from Henkel, Adidas, Sony, Statoil, the BBC and many others. Housing over 7000 smells and chemical molecules, Tolaas’ Berlin based lab is sponsored by IFF, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of artificial flavors and fragrances. With backgrounds in chemistry, mathematics, linguistics and art, Tolaas uses sophisticated chemical and electronic technologies to synthesize and exhibit never before experienced scents. In the 2019/20 season Sissel Tolaas developed the olfactory design for the immersive installation Sensefactory, which can be seen in Zeche Eins at Schauspielhaus Bochum.

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