The Rope

Something ancient and slow burns at the center of this one, like an ember buried under years of accumulation.

Cassia arrives first — a bark-warm spice, not sweet so much as sharp and dry, the kind that clings to old wood and cloth. Rose surfaces briefly, pulled off-course from anything delicate, folded instead into the smoky depth of agarwood and the cool shadow of sandalwood. Patchouli keeps everything low and earthy, while tonka smooths the edges without softening the story. What's left is something textured and patient — a slow burn that doesn't show off, doesn't ask for anything. It simply stays, the way certain things do.

Joe Merrell is a Los Angeles-based artist with over 15 years of experience creating video, animation, print, and sculpture for exhibitions in galleries and museums throughout the United States and Europe. He developed Eyes Are Always There as a platform to sell the Abduction Eau de Parfum and artwork connected to his 2016 art installation, which explored themes of UFOs and alien abduction.

In recent years, Merrell has integrated scent-making into his artistic practice, producing limited runs of perfumes. Instead of launching a new platform, he opted to expand the existing site, as the phrase "the eyes are always there" aligns with his art practice, which centers on image-making.