{"id":322,"date":"2026-05-19T13:13:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T13:13:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/?page_id=322"},"modified":"2026-05-26T14:11:30","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T14:11:30","slug":"does-the-nose-know-challenges-and-successes-during-a-study-of-montien-boonmas-house-of-hope","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/does-the-nose-know-challenges-and-successes-during-a-study-of-montien-boonmas-house-of-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Does the Nose Know? Challenges and Successes During a Study of Montien Boonma\u2019s House of Hope<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n

Does the Nose Know? Challenges and Successes During a Study of Montien Boonma\u2019s House of Hope<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Catherine H. Stephens, Kyna Biggs, Soon Kai Poh, and Lynda Zycherman<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contemporary Art Review, Volume 4 (2024)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Download Article (PDF, 158KB)<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

\u00bfLa nariz sabe? Desaf\u00edos y \u00e9xitos durante un estudio de House of Hope<\/em> de Montien Boonma<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Catherine H. Stephens, Kyna Biggs, Soon Kai Poh, y Lynda Zycherman<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contemporary Art Review, Volumen 4 (2024)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
DESCARGAR ART\u00cdCULO (PDF, 158KB)<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
Keywords<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Montien Boonma, solid-phase microextraction (SPME), spices, scent, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), smell, installation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abstract<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Conservation scientists and conservators at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) collaborated on a project to better understand the scented components used in Montien Boonma\u2019s (b. Thailand, 1953\u20132000) large-scale installation, House of Hope<\/em>. Conceived in 1996, the monumental work consists of two main components: a three-dimensional structure and a mural. The structure is composed of 440 painted wooden stools, 1,385 strings of scented beads, and an enormous steel grid that hangs from the ceiling; combined, the form evokes a Buddhist temple. The work is completed by a custom-painted mural made using glutinous rice powder and various spices; it encircles the temple-like structure and is re-created for each installation. The minimum space required for the installation is 13 x 23 x 29\u2019 (4 x 7 x 9 m). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since a major feature of the installation is the olfactory experience generated by the beads and mural, knowing the composition of these materials would inform decisions related to their physical and scent replication. Though the identity of the spices used in the mural was essential for the work to be correctly installed, the documentation accompanying House of Hope<\/em> when it was acquired was inconsistent and unreliable. In addition, several scented bead strands had deteriorated over the years, requiring new strands to be made; documentation relating to their composition and manufacture was similarly sparse. It became necessary for the conservation team to identify the composition of both the mural and the beads to ensure the long-term viability and preservation of the installation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
Palabras Clave<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Montien Boonma, microextracci\u00f3n en fase s\u00f3lida (SPME), especias, aroma, cromatograf\u00eda de gases\u2013espectrometr\u00eda de masas (GC-MS), espectroscop\u00eda infrarroja por transformada de Fourier (FTIR), olor, instalaci\u00f3n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resumen<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Los cient\u00edficos de conservaci\u00f3n y los conservadores del Museo de Arte Moderno (MoMA) colaboraron en un proyecto para comprender mejor los componentes arom\u00e1ticos utilizados en la instalaci\u00f3n de gran formato House of Hope<\/em> del artista Montien Boonma (n. Tailandia, 1953\u20132000). Concebida en 1996, la obra monumental consta de dos componentes principales: una estructura tridimensional y un mural. La estructura est\u00e1 compuesta por 440 taburetes de madera pintados, 1.385 hileras de cuentas arom\u00e1ticas y una enorme rejilla de acero suspendida del techo; en conjunto, la forma evoca un templo budista. La obra se completa con un mural pintado a medida, elaborado con polvo de arroz glutinoso y diversas especias; este mural rodea la estructura semejante a un templo y se vuelve a crear en cada instalaci\u00f3n. El espacio m\u00ednimo requerido para la instalaci\u00f3n es de 13 x 23 x 29 pies (4 x 7 x 9 m).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dado que una caracter\u00edstica esencial de la instalaci\u00f3n es la experiencia olfativa generada por las cuentas y el mural, conocer la composici\u00f3n de estos materiales orientar\u00eda decisiones relacionadas con su reproducci\u00f3n f\u00edsica y arom\u00e1tica. Aunque la identificaci\u00f3n de las especias utilizadas en el mural era esencial para montar la obra correctamente, la documentaci\u00f3n que acompa\u00f1aba House of Hope<\/em> cuando fue adquirida era inconsistente y poco confiable. Adem\u00e1s, varias hileras de cuentas arom\u00e1ticas se hab\u00edan deteriorado con los a\u00f1os, lo que requer\u00eda fabricar nuevas; la documentaci\u00f3n sobre su composici\u00f3n y fabricaci\u00f3n era igualmente escasa. Se volvi\u00f3 necesario que el equipo de conservaci\u00f3n identificara la composici\u00f3n tanto del mural como de las cuentas para garantizar la viabilidad a largo plazo y preservaci\u00f3n de la instalaci\u00f3n.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
Citation<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Stephens, Catherine H., Kyna Biggs, Soon Kai Poh, and Lynda Zycherman. 2026. \u201cDoes the Nose Know? Challenges and Suc cesses During a Study of Montien Boonma\u2019s House of Hope <\/em>\/ \u00bfLa nariz sabe? Desaf\u00edos y \u00e9xitos durante un estudio de House of Hope <\/em>de Montien Boonma.\u201d In Contemporary Art Review<\/em>, Vol. 4. Edited by Austin Anderson, Jessica Walthew, and adrian hernandez.  Washington, DC: AIC. 92\u201395.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Does the Nose Know? Challenges and Successes During a Study of Montien Boonma\u2019s House of Hope Catherine H. Stephens, Kyna Biggs, Soon Kai Poh, and Lynda Zycherman Contemporary Art Review, Volume 4 (2024) \u00bfLa nariz sabe? Desaf\u00edos y \u00e9xitos durante un estudio de House of Hope de Montien Boonma Catherine H. Stephens, Kyna Biggs, Soon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":349,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-322","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/349"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=322"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":337,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322\/revisions\/337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/contemporaryartreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}