Intra Venus

Others have done a great job of getting at the more literal aspects of this; my nose is still in the beginning stages of training, so after sitting with it conceptually, I’ll say: I like green fragrances, but not *too* green--Chanel No. 19 yes; Vent Vert not really; Jacomo Silences, maybe. This is...not just green, but on a similar axis I’d describe it as bracing, not biting. It smells like the stiffness of crinolines or starch, like the fields in an ad where an impossibly beautiful woman is wearing makeup that attempts to turn back time; like static back when television was analog, but also organic. I love to read the copy and see if I can ‘get’ the description of a perfume, and in this case...there *is* somehow a time element, if I let myself sink into it. I doesn’t smell musty and old, or industrial and new, but I find myself catching a whiff every now and again and realizing it is still there, it persists (that’s one of my favorite parts of wearing perfume, smelling something and being taken aback by how lovely or intriguing it is, and only then remembering, oh yes, I did that!) I can also smell in it something a bit antiseptic with the sharpness of hyacinth and wasabi, that calls to mind hospital rooms and endless waiting—and, yes, transcendence and removal from everyday reality, if not from pain. That’s pretty abstract and may not help anyone make a decision; but I have smelled all of Carter’s perfumes so far and love his cerebral approach, and this and Buen Camino were the two that inspired me to acquire a thumbprint bottle each, so...yes, I (really) like it! And although I do find it satisfyingly thought-provoking, it’s not as challenging as I expected scentwise from the description.

hyper realistic gentle floral that's earthy and root-y. gentle spring flowers wafting through the air, but in a way that feels very natural... unsweetened. another reviewer called this"bold" and I guess it's bold in the sense that is unique, but to me the scent still feels soft- like something I could wear before bed, or lounging around the house. wasabi note adds some bitterness, but it is blended well with the rest of the fragrance, and has the ever so subtle cooling/tingling sensation to the sinuses only when you sniff it really intensely. the wasabi in this reminds me of "real wasabi" (rather than the horseradish dyed green "wasabi" that is commonly used).. it's a lot tamer than you may expect, and almost gives me like a powdery root-y scent as well. I blind bought this and at first sniff it was far too floral for my taste, and I didn't like it. but by second wear I've grown to love it, because it's so dang earthy. I love hyper realistic scents, scents that could exist just by walking outside somewhere, and this feels like one of those. atmospheric, earthy, a perfect spring day. I hope to eventually try carter's other fragrances as well, I'm intrigued. the only thing is I wish it lasted longer, it is a tad fleeting, but I love it nonetheless.

Bright, sharp, and vegetal, it reminds of walking into a flower shop. A mixture of leaves, flowers, moist air, and a slight tinge of synthetic preservative. For me this does not present florals in the usual way a more conventional perfume might. Often florals are very clean, smooth, round, sort of “perfect” versions of what you may smell of the actual flower. This perfume for me gives more of the whole picture, everything that goes into a flowering plant, flower, stem, leaves, and a bit of wetness. The top notes never quite settle for me, it always remains a bit sharp. Though I believe that is intended given the inspiration. I’m not familiar with Wilke’s work, but I appreciate the thought and care that went into crafting a fragrance derived from her and her work. Wonderfully creative fragrance. Previously I said I didn’t find myself reaching for the sample again... however I become addicted to it and have since run through my sample and ordered a bottle. Wonderful, unique, and bright. I have found with much of Weeks Maddox’s work it takes a few wears to “get it” but once I do it’s all I can think about. His fragrances have a rough edge that really speaks to me.

Absolutely lovely, light spring flowers. The hyacinth is beautiful, and makes you think of late spring/early summer when all of the similarly perfumed flowers come out- I'm thinking lilac as well. The wasabi note is very cool, a little bit of a light spicy tickle in your sinuses when you inhale. I love this fragrance and know I'm going to use up my sample in no time. My only complaint is that it really doesn't last very long, only a few hours, but it's really a beautiful fragrance and well worth it regardless.

I read about this perfume the other year when it came out and was fascinated by the inspiration. I wasn't familiar with Wilke's work previously but I appreciate perfume which is so carefully considered and is more meaningful to it's creator. I think the power of an artists work is not merely to be admired or consumed but to inspire other artists to create and that's exactly what we have here in a naturally adjacent step to Carter's first works which were deeply personal but very much about him and his own experiences. Intra Venus has at it's heart a really lovely Hyacinth accord, Identifiable as such but somehow prettier than the very lush, wet, green association I have with Hyacinths. Unfortunately my mum keeps them in the front porch of her house ALL year round because she has an issue with her drains (not a euphemism, it's my mum, Behave!!!) and using the pungency of hyacinths to mask it, yeah so I have a grim association with a mild whiff of human excretor. haha... So let's go back to the opening shall we because it's explosive and interesting green and herbal, bright, tingling the nostils could this be the effects of wasabi? It doesn't smell like horseradish thankfully but the tingle and freshness is akin to ginger or something? Effects wise at least. I'm refraining from trying to explain this perfume in terms of it's conceptual inspiration (pretty thoroughly explained in the notes from the brand) and once dried down it takes on a lived in skin closeness, a bodily feel to something lurking in the base, a saliva on skin quality, juxtaposed against the florals which possess a more wafting and aerated quality, much like the breezy effect of flowers headspace many perfumers try to achieve. Intra Venus achieves that, somehow burrowing IN (as the name would suggest) but billowing OUT just as much. I'm not sure I'd wear this or buy a bottle simply because it's a bit too artistic for me, (although the soft drydown is sweeter and muskier than expected so perhaps I would like to wear it?) but that is the only reason. I find Intra Venus to be an olfactory triumph and genuinely think that Carter is a natural talent who needs to be treasured. Not only his fantastic work for his own project chronotope but other brands I had the pleasure of smelling recently, very much a different tone, but still the same creativity on show. Bravo!

Fascinating, if somewhat unsettling, Intra Venus approaches the green floral chypre concept with a stark realism that collides with something cold and clinical. I love hyacinths, but it is so easy for them to run sharp, almost acrid, when juxtaposed with other notes that are unable to soften their bite. Pairing these flowers with a yarrow oil, another strong green and herbaceous scent, even camphoraceous, imparts this antiseptic quality that I don't think necessarily flatters. My mind reads it as chilling, as if waiting for the other shoe to drop—a prologue to something grim, even as sunlight enters the hospital window and warms the get-well-soon flowers at one's bedside.

Indolic, gold-green, starchy. White asparagus, tuberose, jasmine notes. Well executed funky, realistic, narcotic floral if that's your thing.

This is an interesting aromatic. I get cypress and herbs up front, but then they make way for a blend of hyacinth and wasabi. Wasabi is weird in theory, but it shares the same bright, high frequency that hyacinth has and they just swirl around in your sinuses. There's a deep base of resin and moss that props up the floral. This is a bold one, bright and earthy.

If you're after an incredibly photorealistic floral smell, this is for you. This isn't as loud as some other photorealistic florals that smell as if your nose is right up in the plant. This smells like a Hyacinth Bucket (it's pronounced bouquet) sat in a vase on the desk in an office.