MindArt Connects All

Draw Me an Odour is a trans-disciplinary project led by Dr Jérémie Topin of ChEmoSim lab, Institut de Chimie de Nice, Université Côte D'Azur, Nice, France, and Associate Professor Emma Febvre-Richards, Massey University, Aotearoa New Zealand. This research investigates the links between the sense of smell, colour, and gesture.

The project explores the potential influence of olfactory stimulation on creativity and examines how these findings might be applied to tailored programmes and applications for people living with neurological conditions. At its heart lies a central question: can odours enhance cognitive engagement, focus attention on specific drawing tasks, and ultimately support cognition? And how might these effects translate into tailored therapies and non-pharmaceutical cognitive protocols?

Since 2018, Draw Me an Odour has conducted three studies gathering and comparing data initially from France and New Zealand, and then globally. In these studies, we developed a digital tool enabling participants to explore odorous associations with colour and their drawings. Participants also completed a questionnaire capturing hedonic, familiarity, intensity, and relaxing effects, alongside contextual associations related to nature, indoor and outdoor environments, and memory—whether positive or negative, past or recent.

In 2022, Grasse's prestigious International Perfume Museum invited Draw Me an Odour to exhibit their research findings within this space. This partnership allowed the team to create an interactive installation for the large international audience to gather more data for the study's second stage. In 2025, the project collaboration expanded further to include artists Tim Turnidge, Mike Bridgman, and Peter Miles, who exhibited the second iteration of Draw Me an Odour V2 at the International Perfume Museum of Grasse. This installation compared directional associations between European participants and responses from the rest of the world, examining how individuals—depending on their origin, age, and gender—perceive three familiar odours: rose, cut grass, and lemon. Through this work, cultures meet with smells, sounds, and aesthetics, while associations shift and merge. The dialogue between odours, cultures, and perceptions reveals something profound: each association between a colour and an odour becomes a revelation, a bridge between the chemical and visual realms of our sensory world. Through this exhibition, the team explored a new way of reconnecting with our own sensory memory, of recognising the emotions linked to these invisible presences that populate our daily lives.

"Odours surround us, pass through us, move us - and yet they escape our gaze. Invisible, odorous molecules activate our sensory receptors without ever allowing themselves to be seen. This paradox lies at the heart of olfactory perception, an intimate sense that can, at times, reveal deep and unexpected connections between our inner world and our environment."

Dr. Jérémie Topin

"Odours surround us, pass through us, move us - and yet they escape our gaze. Invisible, odorous molecules activate our sensory receptors without ever allowing themselves to be seen. This paradox lies at the heart of olfactory perception, an intimate sense that can, at times, reveal deep and unexpected connections between our inner world and our environment."

Dr Jérémie Topin