Nuri McBride is a writer, perfumer, researcher, and community organiser.
Her professional work focuses on olfactive cultural education, aromatics in lifecycle rituals, and the preservation of traditional forms of aromatic preparations. She is also deeply interested in labour rights and power equity in the fragrance trade.
In her community work, Nuri advocates for an end to funeral poverty, improved end-of-life care for marginalised peoples, and the normalisation of universal death-care.
Nuri spent the first twelve years of her career in refugee resettlement and torture treatment. She worked primarily in Kenya, Thailand, Israel, and the United States before transitioning to academia and eventually the private sector.
Joining a Chevra Kadisha (Jewish burial society) and becoming a Metaheret led to Nuri advocating for greater inclusiveness in Jewish death rituals and a return to traditional green death practices for non-Orthodox communities.
Nuri has had a profound interest in olfaction since she was a child. This interest led to her applying her skills as a researcher to delve deeper into the subject. Eventually, she apprenticed under several perfumers focusing on traditional West Asian fragrance-making and distillation techniques.
Nuri serves as the Program Curator for the Scent & Society lecture series at the Institute for Art and Olfaction. She explores the intersection of olfaction and death rituals with the Death/Scent project and has her monthly newsletter, Aromatica de Profundis. She is currently developing her own fragrance line that will launch in the coming months. You can learn more about Nuri’s current projects by visiting her Project Portfolio.
Nuri has been featured in the New York Times, Citizen K, Atlas Obscura and other publications. In her free time, Nuri loves Guillermo del Toro’s movies, Umberto Eco’s books, odd smelly things, learning cuneiform, and historical needlework.
“She does impeccable research, and her work is fascinating, timely, and very down to earth.”
Saskia Wilson-Brown , Founder & Executive Director the Institute for Art and Olfaction
[Nuri’s] enthusiasm, insights, and support have bolstered me immensely in the past year, with regard to my creative projects. Nuri writes beautifully and extensively at her own blog Death/Scent.
S. Elizabeth, Writer of The Art of the Occult
She is such a tour de force, the subject matter and her vast knowledge makes for some seriously good pieces of writing.
Liz Moores, CEO & Perfumer of Papillon Perfumery
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