The Schauss Kitchen is an interactive installation by Christopher Reynolds that investigates the psychological and physiological responses elicited by the color Baker-Miller Pink. Through a combination of found objects, sculpture, and performance, Reynolds explores visceral awareness and bodily reaction to a color scientifically proven to suppress aggression and appetite.

The installation draws from the 1978 study by Dr. Alexander Schauss, who demonstrated that exposure to Baker-Miller Pink for as little as fifteen minutes could induce measurable physical effects, including calming the subject, reducing physical strength, and diminishing appetite. Reynolds situates this historical research at the center of The Schauss Kitchen, recontextualizing it within a contemporary art environment that prompts viewers to reflect not only on their biological reactions but also on the cultural narratives that shape ideas of control, consumption, and conditioning.

Within the installation, Cookbook presents an 800-page bound volume printed entirely in Baker-Miller Pink. Instead of stimulating desire, as cookbooks traditionally do, each page turn works against the reader’s appetite, metaphorically and physically suppressing hunger. By weaponizing the format of the cookbook itself, Reynolds highlights the paradox between visual consumption and physiological response.

The site-specific found objects throughout The Schauss Kitchen, each coated in Baker-Miller Pink, further reinforce the disjunction between utility and denial. Items once associated with dietary preparation—tools of nourishment—are rendered useless and ghostlike, becoming pink shadows of their former purpose. These objects serve as relics of a culture obsessed with consumption, now stripped of function and power by an overwhelming sensory intervention.

In Carrel Mirror, Reynolds references the precise dimensions of Schauss’s original poster and study carrel setup, creating a triptych of 18x24 inch pink mirrors. Moving beyond passive exposure, the mirrors invite viewers into an active, embodied encounter with Baker-Miller Pink, reflecting their own image bathed in the color’s disorienting hue. Here, the act of looking becomes an act of self-reflection, forcing participants to confront not only their physiological responses but also the social constructions of appetite, strength, and emotional regulation.

Through The Schauss Kitchen, Reynolds critically examines how subtle environmental cues can be used to manipulate human behavior and perception. The installation offers a nuanced exploration of the intersections between sensory experience, social control, and the rituals of eating, challenging participants to recognize the unseen forces that shape their interactions with the world—and with themselves.