Curious presents essences of London.

"Essences of London was a year-long arts project involving the London Boroughs of Brent, Hackney, Lambeth, Newham and Tower Hamlets. The aim was to create a composite portrait of London by capturing essences of city life through the sense of smell. Hundreds of Londoners were interviewed about their personal smell associations, including workers in 'aromatic trades' such as cobblers, fishmongers, florists, bakers, chemists and refuse collectors. 'On the Scent', a unique live performance by Leslie Hill, Helen Paris and Lois Weaver, was presented in private homes in each of the five boroughs as part of the 'Essences of London' project. 'On the Scent' explores the elusive connections between smell and memory as audience members are invited on intimate and distinctly aromatic journeys through domestic spaces. As part of the performance, audience members were asked the question, 'what smell reminds you of home or makes you feel homesick or just makes you sick?' Edited highlights of these audience interviews are included here, the DVD track names taken from street names of the houses where they were recorded. Documentation of a live performance of 'On the Scent' is also included, as is an introduction to the project by Leslie Hill, Helen Paris and biological scientist Dr. Upinder Bhalla."