I Can Taste You!
A rare condition gives Kathryn a funny taste in her mouth...
In my final year of a Creative Advertising course at uni, classmates were deliberating over what to do for a new project. But I didn’t hesitate.
I’’ll paint my condition!
I thought.
It’s actually something pretty tricky to diagnose.
I found loads of info about it online. It’s called lexical-gustatory synesthesia, and it means that one sensation, like hearing, triggers another, like taste. So, basically, when
I hear different words, especially names, I taste different things!
I also see vivid colours and different shapes. But I can’t predict what’ll happen when. And there’s no cure.
At the time of my project, I’d had it for as long as I could remember. I’d thought everyone was the same. Then, a few years ago, I realised it was just me.
‘When I hear your name, I taste salt-and-vinegar crisps,’ I told my brother Chris, 24.
And it’s not just tastes – I get colours and images, too.
For my mum Sue, 54, I see yellow. My dad Andrew, 54, makes me think of ripples on water.
Not all the tastes are nice, either. And I even feel the food physically in my mouth, which can make my tummy rumble! The scent can be so strong, I find myself looking round to see where it’s coming from.
So, for my project, I decided to make pictures of how names taste to me.
Setting up an Instagram page @i_taste_words,
I found pretty, pastel watercolours, and got started on my illustrations. Lola = lollipops. Ella = jellybeans!
Oliver = olives.
Childhood memories can be quite evocative at times, too… If ever I hear my grandad’s name, John, I can taste potatoes, because, when I was young, Grandad always made Sunday dinner.
Now my Instagram page means people around the world can see how their name tastes to me – as long as it’s one I’ve heard of!
It’s hard to explain how it works, although I’ve tried. ‘You know when you hear a voice in your head as you read?’ I asked a friend once. ‘It’s like that. You don’t make up that voice, and I don’t make up the way my brain translates names.’
I hope one day more will be found out about the condition. Until then, though, I can only hope I get to meet some tasty people!
Chris makes me taste salt-andvinegar crisps!