V&A’s ‘Un-built / Deconstructing Architecture’ event, as part of the 2012 London Festival Of Architecture.

Working with auditory – gustatory synaesthete James Wannerton, sound artist Julian Brown and curator Andrew Stellitano we simulated James’s personal synaesthesic relationship with his surroundings on a journey through the city. We worked with James to create a psycho-geographical mapping of London through his synaesthesia, these gustatory and olfactory ‘sensations’ were paired with the visual and auditory stimulus. Guests were given a bag of ‘Synsations’ containing the gustatory pairings and the space was scented with rhubarb which paired with the soundscape.
“Being a gustatory synaesthete, for me sound, colour and flavour have always been inextricably linked. This project was carefully constructed in a way which intimately and accurately took guests inside this sensory ‘mish-mash’, creating an interactive simulation which non-synaesthetes could explore. I’ve worked on many attempts using differing media to accurately portray the synaesthetic experience and this was the most accurate and certainly best received I have ever been involved with”
James Wannerton, President of the UK Synaesthesia Association.

The series of images I shot attempt to capture the atmospheric and emotional feel of these architectural spaces and the sound composed by Julian Brown used a binaural recording of the London underground as context, retracing locations that have gustatory significance to James.

King’s Cross – Fruit Cake

Bank – Minstrels

The Gherkin – Marzipan

The Shard – Cream Soda