Demo Accords Book

Written by Perfumer Pia Long, with contributions by Nick Gilbert. ISBN: 9781919247403

Containing ten fully published perfume formulas, one piece of fiction and nine essays on political and personal topics, Demo Accords is a multidisciplinary collection of narratives where perfumery is part of the story and the stories are part of the perfumes.

In this work Pia explores the intersection between her two lifelong loves: writing and perfumery. Part manifesto, part polemic, part protest, part autobiography, the common thread is radical vulnerability of the perfumer’s art, practice and personal views.

Interrogating some fundamental questions about who perfumery belongs to and creating a parallel platform without a brand or a commercial consumer product, Demo Accords aims to exist for its own sake as a project that uses perfumery as an artistic storytelling device.

If the book is a script, then the formulas are sheet music, and the actual resulting liquid is therefore the orchestra playing. It is not necessary or compulsory to buy the liquid perfume sample kit to go with the book but it will help everyone hear the music.

The book has significant contributions from Nick Gilbert who wrote the scent descriptions and notes lists, as though for a protest perfume brand. Featuring original illustrations from multiple artists and a full colour cover by a Brighton street artist, Demo Accords is more than the sum of its parts.