Incense made with Problem Library in San Francisco, by Venture.
Primary Notes — Cedar/Labdanum/Tonka
Problem Library is a space that represents deep curiosity—an open, evolving conversation about craft, knowledge, and the way we make sense of the world.
This scent is an exploration of just that, as the scent evolves, it’s meant to mirror how ideas take shape and how the community of Problem Library embody this.
For the workshop, I walked through how I got into fragrance making, and how the idea of “flow”, it’s a word that’s pretty central to that emotional side of design that I like to explore.
Creating this fragrance was a little different than some of my other projects, it was initially shaped by the texts, people, and moments that define Problem Library.
Before we created the incense, I had the chance to refine the fragrance more, and share it regularly with the group at Problem Library, giving us the chance to develop this together.
Creating this fragrance was a little different than some of my other projects, it was initially shaped by the texts, people, and moments that define Problem Library.
For the workshop, I walked through how I got into fragrance making, and how the idea of “flow”, it’s a word that’s pretty central to that emotional side of design that I like to explore.
Before we created the incense, I had the chance to refine the fragrance more, and share it regularly with the group at Problem Library, giving us the chance to develop this together.
Custom incense holders were carved from Brazilian rosewood salvaged from a circa-1850s barn in Brazil. A first set of five were hand-cut and shaped, and all found homes during the Twelve Eighty-eight launch at Too Much Information #006. Future editions are still under consideration.
Custom incense holders were carved from Brazilian rosewood salvaged from a circa-1850s barn in Brazil. A first set of five were hand-cut and shaped, and all found homes during the Twelve Eighty-eight launch at Too Much Information #006. Future editions are still under consideration.
What made this project special is how interactive it was from start to finish. It wasn’t about presenting a finished object but building something with the community that inspired it. The fragrance became a record of those exchanges, changing and settling the same way ideas do when explored together.
100% of proceeds from Twelve Eighty-eight incense will go to supporting Problem Library's incredible arts + education programming. To learn more about their work, visit their site here.
Words & Scent by Dapo Oni
Photography by Jeff Masamori
Packaging by Jeff Masamori & Dapo Oni
Wooden incense holders by Jeff Masamori,
Blake Conway, and Jess Wilson
Words by Dapo Oni & Daniel Lucas
Input and direction from the Problem Library team:
Tamara Chu, Daniel Lucas, Jeff Masamori, and Blake Conway
Special thanks to: Alice Barreras, Sofia Belen Criswell, Steph Chang, Nico Lown Heitz, Toto Honniball, Aaron Hui, You Li, Nadine Macapgal, Elliot Raderman, and James Zelnick
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