Jouissance Empowers Erotic Women Through Fragrance
JOUISSANCE announces its first-ever collection merging sex-positivity with the world of fragrance.
Available June 19, the new release is "inspired by the lives and creations of three elemental erotic writers – authors of iconic texts that are just as provocative today as when they were first released," the brand shared.
From seduction to nostalgia, scents -- especially pheromones -- have an otherworldly effect. According to JOUISSANCE founder Cherry Cheng, fragrance was a very intentional decision. "Using scents as a medium, I hope JOUISSANCE provides a platform to celebrate controversial female authors like Anne Desclos, Anaïs Nin and Catherine Millet, whose works delve deep into the realms of desire and sexuality." Those unfamiliar with the name should know its a reference to "Hélène Cixous' notion of 'jouissance,' which intertwines the feminine erotic pleasure and creativity."
Offering a dive into the sensuous worlds of each writer, each fragrance evokes a signature essence. LA BAGUE D’O references Pauline Réage’s infamous creation, "Story of O," evoking a romantic, yet dark feminine" essence.
EN PLEIN AIR pulls inspiration from the world of art critic and erotic memoirist Catherine M. Delivering "bright, acerbic and fresh" notes, it "opens with the clean airiness of an intellectual life spent in galleries and at editors’ desks, and gives way to the grassy dirtiness of amorous alfresco."
Lastly, LES CAHIER SECRETS dives into the "sensory writings of infamous diarist Anaïs Nin," Cheng continued. With a "warm, nostalgic and sensual" scent LES CAHIER SECRETS "imagines a well-traveled writer’s den. A woman adorns her creative space with all her favorite luxuries in order to retreat to a sensual state of feverish creativity."
For Cheng, each fragrance is a tribute and opportunity to "shed new light on the controversial legacies" of iconic women. Overall, the hope is that each subversive scent will "invite contemporary reflections on the nature of our own desires and how we accept them. In a market dominated by minimalist and gender-neutral fragrances, JOUISSANCE embraces a hyper-feminine aesthetic. For me, it’s essential to show that being intellectual and deeply feminine aren’t mutually exclusive."
Purchase via preorder on Jouissance's website.
