Using Your Senses

It's More Than Sight

A nightclub near my home town has recently been refurbished in light of the recent smoking ban in public spaces. Apparently since the ban has been brought in, certain unpleasant smells that had previously been masked by the smell of smoke have come to light. The Liquid nightclub has installed a ‘smell system’ which can pump out smells into the rooms of the club including the smells of cut grass, roses and perfume fragrances. This also allows them to use certain smells to fit in with their themed nights. For example they have suggested on Valentines night they will pump out fragrances of roses and chocolates to fit in with the mood.

I think this is a really interesting idea and as designers we concentrate on our sense of sight the majority of the time instead of using other senses. Granted it is extremely difficult to incorporate the sense of smell in the majority of designs, but particularly with regards to the design of architecture I think this is an innovative way of getting people to use their other senses when they interact with a design.

I think the idea of sound is also greatly underestimated in design. Radio is still a great way to advertise products and this method doesn’t even involve the typical use of sight. I just think that it is important to consider all the senses when trying to get people to interact with designs.