Dr Piet Devos, olfactory ambassador, is blind. He devised the perfect summary of the Olfabet:
‘Breathe language, spell with smell.’
OLFACTORY AMBASSADORS
The selection of the fragrances were made by the olfactory ambassadors
for the exhibition ‘The World Within Reach’ in Bruges.
They are the beating heart of the start of the Olfabet project.
The Olfabet was developed through their experiences of being blind or visually impaired.
Without them, the Olfabet would never have left the drawing board.
Thanks to their willingness, cooperation and advice, the Olfabet became a reality.
Every scent ambassador has made a unique contribution to the development of this beautiful sensory project,
based on their own lived experiences.
DR PIET DEVOS
Piet has been blind since the age of five. He obtained his doctorate in modern Romance literature in Groningen and is a writer, translator and literary scholar. Together with Tonia In Den Kleef, he was co-curator of the exhibition ‘The World Within Reach’ in Bruges in 2021.
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TONIA IN DEN KLEEF
Tonia is a haptic artist. She creates her works through the sense of touch. Tonia is almost completely blind and can only see contrasts and bright colours. Together with Dr Piet Devos, she was co-curator of the exhibition ‘The World Within Reach’ in Bruges in 2021.
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LETICIA LARANGÉ
Leticia is partially sighted. Together with her husband Jan Gosselin, they are active as board members of 'Samen op de planken', a theatre group for young people and adults with and without disabilities.
JAN GOSSELIN
Jan is blind. Together with his wife, Leticia Larangé, they are active as board members of 'Samen op de planken', a theatre group for young people and adults with and without disabilities.
FRANCKY VAN ONACKER
Francky lives in Bruges and became partially sighted at the age of twelve. Francky has been a chair-maker for forty-one years. He repairs canework seating using a technique called cannage in French. The woven seats contain regular rows of octagonal holes, just like a honeycomb. They are reminiscent of the chairs one used to find in churches.
TIMMY DE WAELE
Timmy De Waele lives in Kortrijk and is blind. He is an administrative expert in the department of  Internal State Affairs at the  FOD [Federal Public Services Agency]. In his spare time, Timmy specialises in wine tasting.
MEI LAN NG
Mei Lan is twenty-nine years old and gradually began losing her sight at the age of five. She has been blind since the age of sixteen. Mei Lan is currently an entrepreneur and awareness coach.
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Olfabet is an artistic research project by olfactory artist dr. Peter de Cupere
affiliated with PXL-MAD School of Arts & UHasselt.
He is researcher at the MANUFrACTURE Research group
of the PXL-MAD School of Arts
