Synesthesia is a neurological phenomenon in which the stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway triggers involuntary, automatic experiences in another. My synesthesia causes me to experience certain tastes/textures when reading or hearing names or viewing certain objects or materials.

While the associations caused by synesthesia are seemingly arbitrary, I believe that these pairings can occasionally align to reveal certain truths. Dutch Researcher Cretien van Campen suggests that synesthesia’s presence in the field of art can demonstrate the use of certain analytical methods, while Psychologists Ladan Shams and Aaron R. Seitz believe that multisensory stimulation facilitates learning. Critical theorist Mieke Bal argues that historic prioritization of sight over the other senses has reinforced political issues such as nationalism, gender inequality, and the mistreatment of minority groups and therefore that a focus on the multisensory serves to dismantle hegemonic power structures. 

While not everyone has synesthesia, everyone has unique associations and the capacity for multisensory experience. Through sharing my own personal associations, I hope to encourage synesthetic thought in the viewer.