Spain’s Fragrant Modernity

The Trinity Long Room Hub, Arts and Humanities Research Institute

An in-person talk, discussion and olfactory experience with Prof. Bob Davidson (University of Toronto).

Trinity Long Room Hub

An in-person public lecture by Prof. Bob Davidson (University of Toronto) organised by the Trinity Centre for Global Intercultural Communications and the Department of Hispanic Studies in the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultural Studies.When Puig Beauty &amp; Fashion Group, acquired its longtime rival Myrurgia in 2000, it closed a circle on Spanish perfumery that had begun in the mid-1910s. Along with Perfumería Gal in Madrid, these houses were at the heart of Spanish and Catalan fragrance production for nearly a century. In this paper, Davidson traces the ways in which both Myrurgia and Puig contributed to Spanish modernity through design, advertising and, importantly, the fragrances themselves. He argues that while Myrurgia’s early works mirrored modernist and avant-garde artistic trends and sensibilities, it would be Puig’s iconic Lavanda Puig, Agua Brava, Azur, Estivalia and, of course, Quorum, that would dominate the Spanish fragrance establishment and become aspirational olfactory markers of their time. Note: As part of our discussion, participants will have the opportunity to sample a variety of the scents.Bob Davidson is Professor of Spanish and Catalan Studies at the University of Toronto. He is the author of Jazz Age Barcelona (U of Toronto Press, 2009; shortlisted for the Canada Prize in the Humanities) and The Hotel: Occupied Space (U of Toronto Press, 2018). His current work includes a study of material culture and early 20th-century Spanish and Catalan narrative (By and About Things) and a new research project entitled The Scent of Spain: Fragrance, Odour and Culture that considers key fragrances and scents that contributed to the Spanish olfactory environment from the beginning of the modern fragrance industry in the country to the early 2000s. He is the founder and co-editor of UTP’s Toronto Iberic book series and has published work on different aspects of the Castilian and Catalan avant-gardes, cultural theory and film. In addition to directing the Northrop Frye Centre at Victoria College, Prof. Davidson currently serves as Chair of the Manuscript Review Committee of University of Toronto Press.

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