Illuminum Fragrance

The eroticism of construction

By Antonino Cardillo

Behind a portal on a Georgian street in London, lives a small grey grotto. Its rugged walls, imprinted with gestures of the mason’s trowel reveal the eroticism which was conveyed in the act of construction by the ancients.

The pozzolanic ash echoes the volcanic topography from where it was quarried. As ‘chambers of light’ the three tall openings facing the street orchestrate the light and shadow.

Onto a rough wall:
the backdrop for a sweeping semi-circle of thirty-seven irregular glass forms each suspended by a black thread.

Enclosed are colours.
Invisible colours revealed only by the nose.

Data

• Time: May 2014‑Apr. 2015; demolished in 2017
• Place: Illuminum Fragrance, 41 Dover St, Mayfair, London, UK
• Area: 27 m² (one storey)
• Typology: shop
Tags:
• colours,
• commercial,
• forms,
• grottoes

Credits

• Client: Illuminum Fragrance (via Suzanne Trocmé)
• Director: Keith Hamilton
• Olfactory glasses: Asakala Geraghty
• Architecture design and construction management: Antonino Cardillo
• Photography: Antonino Cardillo
• Text: Antonino Cardillo
• English translation: Antonino Cardillo, Morgan Ferrar, and Asakala Geraghty
• Construction company: Italian Art Design Ltd.
• Masonry: Adrian Paiunui Mihai, Fabio Di Monte, and Gianmarco Di Monte
• Glass: Elliot Walker
• Carpet: Natural Elements Flooring
• Thanks to Paolo Bedetti, Anna Marra, and Paula O’Brien

Selected publications

• Valeria Maria Iannilli, ‘New retail scenarios —⁠ part 2’, in Retail and Service Experience Design for CCIs, course, DigiMooD MOOCs, Politecnico di Milano, 9 Feb. 2021.
• Antonino Cardillo, ‘A synchronicity of cultures and civilisations’, paper presented to the Dessauer Gespräche, ed. Johannes Kister, Hochschule Anhalt, Dessau Institute of Architecture, 13 Nov. 2019.
• Annie Carroll, ‘Our top three favourite works by architect Antonino Cardillo’, atelierlumira.com, Sydney, 22 Jan. 2018.
• Antonino Cardillo, ‘Vaults, grottoes, arches and polychromy’, paper presented to the Heinze ArchitekTOUR Kongress, STATION-Berlin, Berlin, 23 Nov. 2017.
• Mrinalini Ghadiok, ‘Elemental’, Mondo*Arc India, no. 15, New Delhi, July 2017, pp. 10, 50‑51, 56‑57.
• Jeanette Knsmann, Stephan Burkoff, ‘Architektur und Wahrheit’, DEAR Magazin, no. 1, Berlin, Apr. 2017, pp. 72.
• Sipane K-Hoh, ‘L’architecture est un songe’, detailsdarchitecture.com, Paris, 28 Nov. 2016.
• Houda Jeoual, ‘L’odorat en architecture’, in Au-Delà du Regard, thesis, Ecole d’Architecture de Casablanca, Sept. 2016, pp. 68‑69.
• Anonymous, ‘Inside-out retail’, in How We Shop Now What’s Next?, Westfield, London, Jan. 2016, p. 28.
• Philippa Stanton, ‘Saturday…with scented reflections’, 5ftinf.com, London, 31 Oct. 2015.
• Anonymous, ‘Luxury futures showcase 2015’ [video], The Future Laboratory, LS:N Global, London, 16 Sept. 2015.
• Achim Meissner, ‘Betörende Schlichtheit’, handelsjournal, no. 9/15, Düsseldorf, Sept. 2015, pp. 6‑7.
• Jessica Cooper, ‘Illuminum: a shop with no products in sight’, Eclectic, no. AW15, Paris, Sept. 2015, pp. 160‑161.
• Alex Jordan, ‘Primordial perfume’, LS:N Global, London, 15 May 2015.
• Emma Moore, ‘Colour as a narrative: perfume brand Illuminum explores realm of scent through architecture’, wallpaper.com, London, 13 May 2015.
• Anna Winston, ‘Antonino Cardillo combines scent and texture for Illuminum Fragrance shop interior’, dezeen.com, London, 6 May 2015. {tags: antonino cardillo, london, perfume, scent, volcanic rock}