Human X Shark　(2017)

Shiseidoとのコラボレーション作品。女性を強くし、サメを魅惑する香水制作の可能性を探るリサーチプロジェクト。

Near yet far. Loving a person is bone-breaking. Even having explained at length, even having appealed to the five senses and behavior, sometimes there is still no understanding. For example, I have a feeling that sometimes I can trust a dog more than a person. If no matter what people still can’t understand each other, it makes me want to connect with some living thing even more distant from human beings, one whose communication potential is unclear. A “shark,” for example.

近くて遠い。人間と恋愛するのは骨が折れる。言葉を尽くしても、五感や行動で訴えても分かり合えない時がある。

例えば犬の方が人間より信用できる気がする。どうせ分かり合えないのならばいっそ人間から遠い、コミュニケーションの可能性が未知の生物と繋がってみたい。例えば「サメ」と。

As can be seen in the Japanese character for the word “shark,” sharks are fish but they also have organs of copulation and a variety of mating patterns. Further, at least one species of shark can potentially utilize either sexual or parthenogenic reproduction. Some say that the future of biotechnology may allow humans, too, to have something like same-sex reproduction or parthenogenesis. Thus, for me, the shark is an appealing animal in the sense that it symbolizes “the wild-natured, strong woman fully utilizing future technology.” Here, to transform into a female shark, the challenge was to use special ingredients to create a fragrance alluring to a male shark.

鮫はその漢字からも読み取れるように、魚類でありながら交尾器を持ち更には様々な繁殖様式を持つ。更にはある種のサメは有性生殖も単為生殖も可能だ。人間もバイオテクノロジーの発展した未来では同性間での生殖や単為生殖も可能だと言われている。私にとってサメは「未来のテクノロジーを使いこなす野性的で強い女性」を象徴する憧れの生物。今回はサメのメスに化ける為に、特殊な材料を用いてオスザメを魅惑する香水をつくれるのか？という挑戦となった。

Human (Red Bottle perfume)

The fragrance is combined herbs grown in dry ground and wild field jasmine. To these, added grapefruit, known for its stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, imagining a fragrance that can both activate a sense of euphoria and allow latent wildness and inner capabilities to blossom.

*Reference: Haze, S., Sakai, K, and Gozu, Y., Effects of fragrance inhalation on sympathetic activity in normal adults.Jpn.J.Pharmacol., 90, 247-253 (2002)

Shark (Blue Bottle perfume)

Mainly used trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) ― the substance sharks use to regulate osmotic pressure, a small amount of Trimethylamine to express the deterioration of the shark over time, Amber Extreme to express the shark’s visually metallic skin, and finally sea lettuce extract to contribute a sense of the sea. See the nearby video about fish-enticing olfactory elements and shark-luring smell by umami acids and sexual pheromones by PGF2a which is labor induction medicine for human female.

Reference: Yoichi Yabuki, et al. “Olfactory receptor for prostaglandin F2α mediates male fish courtship behavior” (2016)

This project is work in progress.

It started from a conversation about how you can sometimes feel a bit suffocated in Japan. This project started among four women who’ve had experience living overseas. The theme “as a woman living in Japan” emerged naturally. There are certain preconceptions about women, both good and bad. Maybe you’ve been unconsciously controlling yourself, bound by some idea about being “feminine”? That moment when you shake off such preconceptions and put yourself forth just as you are. That moment when you regain wildness and maximize your appeal, your power. Here I worked tag-team with Ms. Hasegawa to try to realize that kind of moment, based on the idea of the wild ecosystem in which such preconceptions seem unlikely to exist.

-Hiroko Ozeki

日本にいるとたまに息苦しく感じることがありますよね、という会話からはじまりました。海外生活経験者を含む女性４人でスタートしたこのプロジェクト。「日本で生きる女性」が自然にテーマとなりました。いいことも悪いことも含め、女性に対する固定概念が存在する。女性らしく、という考えに縛られて、自分自身を無意識にコントロールしていないだろうか。そんな固定概念を振り払い、ありのままの自分をだしきる瞬間。野性を取戻し、最大限に魅力が発揮されパワーアップする瞬間。固定概念など存在しないであろう野生の生態系をベースに、長谷川さんとのタッグでそんな瞬間を実現させることを試みました。

ー尾関弘子

When the idea of sharks first came up, I immediately associated it with the scent of blood and that sort of thing. But, as we moved forward with the idea with Ms. Hasegawa, I realized I was being asked to create a scent from some angle different than just that. I knew I wanted to create a fragrance that adequately expresses her worldview, but unfettered by any preconceived ideas.

Aroma, whether natural or man-made, is a very powerful thing, directly connected to the instinct of olfaction, that affects both mind and body through the sensing of volatilized chemical substances. In the red bottle, I tried to create a fragrance that can help release one’s inner wildness, while in the blue bottle I used mainly ingredients known to attract marine life, but which humans cannot smell.

-Kaori Inaba

始めはサメということで安直ですが血の香り等を想像していました。しかし長谷川さんと進めるにあたり、もっと違う角度からの発想で香りを創っていくことが求められました。既成概念に捉われない、彼女の世界観を表現した香りを創りたいと思いました。香りとは天然であれ人工であれ化学物質を揮発させて、嗅覚という本能に直結する感覚を通じ、心身に影響を与える大変パワフルなものです。赤パートは内なる自分の野性を解き放つ道具となるような香水を、青パートは実際に海の生物が寄ってくる、人間には香らない材料を主に香水を製作してみました。

ー稲場香織

Special Thanks

Project team: This project is made for the collaboration project between Ai Hasegawa and the Shiseido people.

尾関弘子（資生堂/マーケッター） Hiroko Ozeki (Shiseido Global Prestige Brand Operations, SHISEIDO Brand Unit)

稲場香織（資生堂/研究員Kaori Inaba (Shiseido Global Innovation Center)

Design advisor : 藤原大 Fujiwara Dai

Image video part : 高遠奈可 Naka Takato

Interview part : 飯郷雅之 Masayuki Iigo ( Utsunomiya University ),武田志津 Shizu Takeda (Hitachi), 沖田京子 Kyoko Okita (Hitachi)

(Additional videos are talking about background story of this project and a making video that research interview to chemical physiological system researcher and talking about how we made this perfume by Shiseido’s perfumer.)

Support : Culture department of Shiseido Company, Limited; JST ERATO 川原万有情報網 JST ERATO Kawahara Project; 長谷川香料株式会社T. Hasegawa Co. Ltd.;日立株式会社Hitachi, Ltd.;Beige Creative & Co., Inc.;タイエビ・パリマ（資生堂/商品開発担当) Parima Taiebi (Shiseido Global Prestige Brand Operations, SHISEIDO Brand Unit)

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Human X Shark (2017)

Human X Shark　(2017)