Materials Lab Workshop: Unveiling the Scents at the Court of Versailles, with Alexis Karl

This workshop invites participants to experience the sumptuously aromatic world of Versailles as seen through the lives of two historical figures known for their decadent tastes: Madame de Pompadour and Marie Antoinette. With artist Alexis Karl as our guide, the perfumed court of Versailles will come alive through its scents.

Following a presentation and visit to François Boucher’s portrait of Madame de Pompadour in the galleries, we will proceed to the Materials Lab. There, against a background of French Baroque music, we will create our own fragrances, inspired by perfumed notes favored at Versailles, such as violet, rose, and musk. We will also discover the scents that replaced the voluptuous fragrances of the aristocracy, such as lavender and orange, and that typified the scent of change during the French Revolution, when the streets filled with gunpowder and unrest.

All materials will be provided.

The hands-on session will take place in the Materials Lab on the Lower Level.

$15 workshop fee. Registration is required and space is limited; registration will open on this form, beginning on Thursday, September 11. Workshop fee must be paid to confirm registration. Minimum age of 14; no previous experience required.

You may also like the following events from Harvard Art Museums:

• This Sunday, 14th September, 11:00 am, Spotlight Tour: The Art of Conservation, with Sachi Laumas ’26 in Cambridge
• This Sunday, 14th September, 02:00 pm, Spotlight Tour: Injury and Repair, with Diana Ochoa-Chavez ’26 in Cambridge
• Next Tuesday, 16th September, 12:00 pm, Encounters with Conservation in Cambridge

Also check out other Workshops in Cambridge, Arts events in Cambridge.