Es Devlin installation Mirror Maze, Peckham

One woman connects Beyoncé, Benedict Cumberbatch, The Royal Ballet, the 2012 Olympics and a whole host of contemporary theatre blockbusters. Oliver-winning stage designer Es Devlin has shifted the typical dynamic of backstage creatives to become as high profile as the performers on her stages. Whether Kanye West's world tour or new writing at the Royal Court, her sets are show-stopping.

Now, Devlin goes solo with her first stand-alone installation, Mirror Maze, launching in Peckham's Copeland Park for a five day exhibition. The project has been created in collaboration with The Fifth Sense, a new online platform from i-D in partnership with Chanel, set up to celebrate women in creative industries.

With characteristic theatrical flair, the Mirror Maze installation evokes an inner world, developed over four chambers and inspired by the role fragrance plays in conjuring memories, emotions and associations.

Enter to a large-scale video projection of hands at work, which blurs boundaries between the creative process and the final product. Then, slipping through the oval hole in the centre of the projection, visitors meander through a maze of mirrored walls. While the curving lines are inspired by Coco Chanel's sleek 1920s mirrored staircase, the disorientating twist of tunnels, trails and staircases recalls both the the experience of being backstage and the abstract idea of memory chambers.

At the heart of the maze -- when you finally find it -- water, projections and sound combine to mimic the helpless sensation of falling. In the final chamber, empty space red haze and a bespoke fragrance combine to curiously calming effect. The heady mix of jasmine, neroli and orange is a fragrance with a fleeting life: it was created especially for the installation by the in-house perfumer at Chanel, Olivier Polge. The layers of scent come from Devlin's own memories, spanning heartbreak and a favourite scented candle. After Mirror Maze closes the fragrance will cease to exist.

Those unable to get to Peckham to delve into the installation can explore it inline at The Fifth Sense, where there will also be an original documentary film called Making Spaces, exploring the breadth of Es Devlin's work.


Mirror Maze opens to the public from 21 -25 September, at 12pm - 8pm