The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Ninety-nine bottles. That was the point. Ömer Ipekçi titled his 2020 release nothing at all, letting the work speak without a label to lean on. The result sits in Pekji's limited catalog as both a gesture and a provocation: what happens when a perfumer names a fragrance after the absence of a name? The answer lives in the bottle, and it's louder than any title could be. Turkish rose absolute drags itself through industrial materials, a carnation absolute so present it overrules the spice entirely, and a silhouette that refuses to settle into anything easy. The composition treats naming as an obstacle, then sidesteps it completely.
The combination of glue and carnation absolute is unusual enough on paper, but what's stranger is what İpekçi does with the duality. Turkish rose absolute, a floral material prized for its depth and almost jammy density, sits opposite Indian oud and rubber, substances that smell like warehouses and tarmac. Carnation absolute bridges the two, spicy and clove-faceted, pulling the floral warmth into the smoky, acrid territory. The millefleurs reference hints at a bed of coexisting florals, but this particular bed looks fire-damaged.
The evolution
The opening is confrontational. Rubber and industrial glue arrive first, sharp and solvent-edged, almost chemical in their clarity. Black pepper and cinnamon hit at the same time, turning the brightness into something that prickles. It reads as a scent meant to repel casual contact, and for a stretch in the early going, it does exactly that. Then carnation absolute and Turkish rose absolute emerge from underneath, warmed by immortelle's burnt-maple sweetness. The floral moment is brief but undeniable, a flash of pink before the smoke and oud settle in for the long haul. Sandalwood and a soil tincture ground the base, with vanilla edging the smoke into something almost edible. Over time, the industrial notes recede and the warmth persists, wearing close to skin with moderate sillage that announces itself without flooding a room.
Cultural impact
Few fragrances generate the kind of polarizing discussion that untitled attracts within the communities that track experimental perfumery closely. Wearers describe it as a benchmark for what the genre can feel like at its most uncompromising, comparing its abrasive opening to discovering a new art form. References to Béla Tarr's films and harsh noise records surface in community discussion, where the scent gets filed alongside work that values discomfort as a precursor to beauty.
The House
PekjiPekji is an independent Turkish perfume house that blends personal memory with contemporary scent craft. Founded by graphic designer‑turned‑nose Ömer İpekçi, the brand emerged from an underground circle before opening its first public collection in 2018. Its catalogue spans from the early 2015 experiments to the 2021 releases, offering a handful of distinct fragrances that explore identity, culture, and raw emotion. Pekji’s bottles carry a minimalist aesthetic, while each scent invites the wearer to confront familiar moments through an unconventional olfactory lens.
The Creator
Ömer IpekçiIpekçi's work tends toward boldness and unexpected combinations. Reviews of his fragrances describe compositions that are not for the faint-hearted—rich, complex, and architecturally ambitious.
