Sruli Recht's exhibition "LAIR" has opened at the SWCAC museum in Shenzhen, featuring 68 sculptures across 11 installations that took 15 years to create. The works employ unconventional materials such as lava casting, lightning-formed glass, and bee-skin fur, presented as ceremonial artifacts. The immersive experience includes custom musical architecture by Valgeir Sigurðsson, whose score changes with each room, and 14 fragrances developed by perfumer Alex Lee and IFF, made from strange ingredients to set the mood. Visitors receive a small scent object upon leaving.
This exhibition matters because it represents a radical fusion of art, geology, and sensory design, pushing the boundaries of how audiences engage with sculpture and installation. By mimicking natural processes like geological shifts and chemical reactions, Recht challenges traditional notions of craftsmanship and materiality. The collaboration with perfumers and composers signals a growing trend toward multi-sensory art experiences, potentially influencing how museums design immersive shows in the future.