The Essence of a Painting. An Olfactory exhibition represents a new approach to the Prado’s collections, on this occasion through the sense of smell, with almost 65.500 visitors. With this aim in mind, and with the technological sponsorship of Samsung, the special collaboration of the Perfume Academy Foundation and the “AirParfum” technology developed by Puig, the perfumer Gregorio Sola has created ten fragrances associated with elements present in the painting The Sense of Smell, part of the series on “The Five Senses” executed by Jan Brueghel in 1617 and 1618 in which the allegorical figures were painted by his friend Rubens.

It is the sense of smell that allows visitors to appreciate the different elements depicted in the painting. In order to achieve this Gregorio Sola, Senior Perfumer at Puig and a numerary academician at the Perfume Academy occupying the Sandalwood Chair, has created fragrances such as “Allegory”, which encourages viewers to focus on the small bouquet of flowers which the allegorical figure is smelling; “Gloves”, which reproduces the smell of gloves scented with ambergris, based on a formula of 1696; “Fig Tree”, and which leads us to spot the tree in the painting; and “Orange Blossom”, which directs the gaze towards the still used to obtain the plant extract. In total, ten fragrances which accompany the sense of sight and provide unique sensations for an appreciation of the painting.

The Sense of Smell, Jan Brueghel and Rubens, 1617-18

The Sense of Smell, the work that provides the exhibition’s central focus and inspiration, is part of the series on “The Five Senses”, exhibited in its entirely in this gallery, which Jan Brueghel painted in 1617 and 1618. The allegorical figures in the scenes are by his friend Rubens.

The series was probably commissioned by the Infanta Clara Eugenia and her husband Albert of Austria, rulers of the Southern Low Countries, for whom Brueghel worked as court painter. The objects included in these scenes reflect art collecting and taste at the European courts of this period. In 1636 the five paintings were in Madrid in the collection of Philip IV, who had them installed in a room decorated with two ebony and bronze bookcases, shown alongside works attributed to Dürer, Titian and Patinir, among others. These paintings were among the highlights of the king’s collection.

Brueghel was one of the most appreciated painters of his day. Son of Pieter Bruegel (the two artists spelled their names differently), he trained with his grandmother, the miniaturist Mayken Verhulst. Brueghel lived in Rome, Naples and Milan from 1589 to 1596, where his clients included Ascanio Colonna (also a patron of Cervantes) and Federico Borromeo. The latter wrote that the artist’s painting reflected the beauty and variety of nature.

Most of Brueghel’s career was spent in Brussels and Antwerp and he was among the earliest specialists in flower painting. On one occasion he stated that he took a long time to finish his works because they included flowers that bloomed at different seasons of the year. His distinctive use of his pigments evokes the texture of the flowers and plants which he painted, suggesting his remarkable empathy with these motifs.

10 fragrances to be smelled in the exhibition with the “AirParfum” technology

The “AirParfum” technology developed by Puig and unique in the world of perfume makes it possible to appreciate up to 100 different fragrances without overloading our sense of smell while respecting the identity and different notes of each perfume. The public will be able to smell 10 elements in the painting by using this technology through the tactile screen provided by Samsung.