History of Perfume

The use of fragrant aromas goes back thousands of years. They were first used in religious practices in the form of burning incense that produced a pleasant scent. Incense burning began in Messopotamia about 4000 years ago. In fact, the word perfume comes from the Latin phrase "per fume" (through smoke). The Egyptians were important in the development of ancient perfumes and invented the idea of perfume bottles. The Egyptian ideas of perfume later spread to other ancient civilizations. Perfumes were important in the baths of ancient Rome. Avicenna, an Arab chemist in medieval times developed the process of extracting perfumes from flowers. The use of perfumes spread to Europe, even before the coming of the Renaissance. Medieval and Renaissance rulers in Europe granted charters to perfumers. Various methods of extracting and preparing perfumes commercially were developed in Europe with the beginning of modern science in the 18th and 19th centuries. The first synthetic chemical to be used as a perfume was developed by Fougère Royale, Houbigant in France in 1882. The chemical perfume manufacturers that we know today mostly came into existence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Art, Functional and Abstract

Most human endeavors, including art, serve some function. The prehistoric pictograms found on rocks and caves show people and animals and tell a story. Medieval European paintings showed people and events concerning religion. In the periods following the Middle Ages portraits of people who could afford to commission them were painted as well as pictures of secular as well as religious scenes. The invention of the camera took away the function of the painting as a means of visiually recording people and events. But it also freed the artists from strict adherance to realism. First came the Impressionists whose drawings still contained realism but without strict adherance to color and form. Later, in the 20th Century, abstract art came on the scene, where a drawing was appreciated for its beauty without depicting anything or not looking to the casual eye like what it was depicting. Then the camera itself became art with more realism.
Jewelry, dishes, vessels, and other objects with a function other than art itself have been adorned with abstract art throughout the centuries going back to prehistoric times as well as with pictures of people, animals, and plants. Architecture serves the function of providing shelter but also can be art. Images have been carved into the walls of some buildings while others display their beauty abstractly.
Art must have some kind of beauty to be art. Beauty can be pretty or it can at times be a harsh beauty, but it should evoke an emotion of some kind other than its pure function.
See Beadshaper for examples of handcrafted glass beads and jewelry art that is functional and can be abstract or pictorial.

History of Arts and Culture in Evanston, Illinois

The overwhelming source of arts and culture in Evanston is Northwestern University. Northwestern began in with a meeting of the founders over a hardware store in Chicago in 1850. They wanted to establish a university in an area that was barely beyind the pioneering stage. They purchased land north of the city in what is now Evanston and opened the university in 1851. Evanston is named after one of those founders, John Evans.
The Block Museum of Art of Northwestern University began with a donation to the university by the Block family in 1980. The museum was named for the Blocks in 1998.
Other than Northwestern  University, the Evanston Arts Center was opened in 1929 by a group of civic leaders to further the cultural life of Evanston. It began in the basement of the public library, moved to an abandoned barber shop, and finally to its present location.
Another art museum in Evanston is the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian which was founded in 1997 to focus on the culture and history of Native Americans.
There are also a number of art and craft shops in Evanston.


The Beadshaper  will be presenting her handcrafted lampwork glass beads (including fashion fish and fashion flower beads) and handcrafted viking knit and bead crotchet jewelry at Ayla's Originals, at 1511 Sherman Ave in Evanston on Saturday, August 6 and Sunday, August 7.