This project explores fragrance as a direct translation of place and craft. Each scent is derived from a region where a material practice is still alive, capturing the environmental conditions that shape both the object and the maker.
Rather than constructing abstract perfumes, the work focuses on **real geographies: coastal air, humid forests, mineral-rich ground** distilling them into scent. The bottle becomes a vessel for more than fragrance; it holds landscape, process, and memory.
At its core is the idea of the commons, what is shared rather than owned. Land, materials, and knowledge exist collectively, and craftspeople act as stewards of these resources, working within the limits and possibilities of their environment.
Scent becomes a way of making this relationship tangible. Each fragrance reflects not just a place, but the conditions that sustain it, suggesting that what we experience sensorially is shaped by shared ecological and cultural systems.
The logo is built from individual vessel forms that come together to create a flower-like structure. Each element represents a distinct origin, while the overall composition reflects unity through accumulation.
This relationship mirrors the project itself - multiple landscapes and crafts converging into a single system, where difference forms cohesion.
Trajan is rooted in classical Roman inscriptions, carrying a sense of permanence and historical weight. Its association with carved stone and monumentality aligns with the project’s focus on enduring materials and long-standing traditions. The typeface introduces a quiet authority, allowing the work to feel timeless without becoming decorative.
The wordmark has been refined so that the serifs of the two “M”s meet at the center, creating a moment of connection within the letterforms.This subtle modification reinforces the idea of convergence and shared ground, where separate elements are drawn together into a unified whole.
The first fragrance is informed by the practice of urushi lacquer, rooted in Japan’s humid, forested regions. The process depends on climate—requiring moisture in the air for the lacquer to cure—making the surrounding environment inseparable from the craft itself.
The scent draws from hinoki wood, native to these regions, known for its soft, resinous, and slightly citrus profile. It evokes the atmosphere of the forest: damp, warm, and quietly aromatic.
Here, fragrance operates as an extension of place—not imagined, but observed and translated.
The “Vessel”