Perfumer: Chris Bartlett.
The Elephant’s formula has a fresh air nuance and violet leaves in the opening. The heart layer is sandalwood highlighted with ambery kohinool material and the base has accords of chocolate and coconut milk, both used to enhance effect of sandalwood rather than turn fragrance into a gourmand.
Fun fact: Elephant was originally meant to be a spicy chai and sandalwood fragrance to represent India. The sandalwood idea stayed, but the idea of elephants in their habitation led to the green, fresh and leafy top instead.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is a scent for close-range presence: thoughtful, composed and slightly untamed, like moving through shade and foliage rather than stepping into a room to be noticed. It suits quiet confidence, where the green opening and soft woods read as natural and assured rather than polished or decorative.
How to wear
Best in mild to cool weather, where its leafy opening and sandalwood heart can unfold without feeling heavy. Apply sparingly at first: as an extrait, it has depth and staying power, and the coconut-cocoa base stays more atmospheric than sweet, especially on skin with a light hand.
Who it’s for
For wearers who like green woods, naturalistic compositions and perfumes with a conceptual edge. It will appeal to those who enjoy sandalwood, leafy textures and restrained complexity over sweetness, florals or obvious gourmand effects.
Release year
2017
The nose
Chris Bartlett is a contemporary perfumer known for building detailed, tactile compositions with a strong sense of texture and atmosphere. His work on Elephant shows that instinct for structure: a green, airy opening, a layered sandalwood heart and a drydown that uses cocoa and coconut milk as support rather than sweetness. Bartlett’s approach here is especially notable for its complexity and restraint. Elephant was developed over more than a year, and the final formula became one of his most intricate, using a large material palette to create a scent that feels expansive and natural rather than loud or gourmand.
Collaborators
Victor Wong, Zoologist’s founder and creative director, worked closely with Chris Bartlett on the concept, helping steer the fragrance away from its original chai-spice direction toward a greener vision inspired by the elephant’s habitat and foraging behavior.
Zoologist’s story
Zoologist builds fragrances as imaginative studies of the animal kingdom, translating behavior, habitat and symbolism into scent rather than chasing conventional luxury codes. The house is known for giving independent perfumers room to create bold, conceptual compositions with a strong narrative core.
Elephant’s concept
Elephant was developed over more than a year and began as a concept centered on Indian spice, chai tea and sandalwood, reflecting the animal’s cultural association with India. As the project evolved, Bartlett and Victor Wong shifted the brief toward the elephant’s natural environment, opening the composition into fresh air, green leaves and a more spacious woody structure.
Extra info
Elephant was released in 2017 and was an Art & Olfaction Awards finalist in the Independent Category. Its formula was originally imagined as a chai-and-sandalwood perfume before the concept shifted toward the elephant’s habitat. The fragrance is presented as a 20% parfum extrait.
Perfumer: Chris Bartlett.
The Elephant’s formula has a fresh air nuance and violet leaves in the opening. The heart layer is sandalwood highlighted with ambery kohinool material and the base has accords of chocolate and coconut milk, both used to enhance effect of sandalwood rather than turn fragrance into a gourmand.
Fun fact: Elephant was originally meant to be a spicy chai and sandalwood fragrance to represent India. The sandalwood idea stayed, but the idea of elephants in their habitation led to the green, fresh and leafy top instead.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is a scent for close-range presence: thoughtful, composed and slightly untamed, like moving through shade and foliage rather than stepping into a room to be noticed. It suits quiet confidence, where the green opening and soft woods read as natural and assured rather than polished or decorative.
How to wear
Best in mild to cool weather, where its leafy opening and sandalwood heart can unfold without feeling heavy. Apply sparingly at first: as an extrait, it has depth and staying power, and the coconut-cocoa base stays more atmospheric than sweet, especially on skin with a light hand.
Who it’s for
For wearers who like green woods, naturalistic compositions and perfumes with a conceptual edge. It will appeal to those who enjoy sandalwood, leafy textures and restrained complexity over sweetness, florals or obvious gourmand effects.
Release year
2017
The nose
Chris Bartlett is a contemporary perfumer known for building detailed, tactile compositions with a strong sense of texture and atmosphere. His work on Elephant shows that instinct for structure: a green, airy opening, a layered sandalwood heart and a drydown that uses cocoa and coconut milk as support rather than sweetness. Bartlett’s approach here is especially notable for its complexity and restraint. Elephant was developed over more than a year, and the final formula became one of his most intricate, using a large material palette to create a scent that feels expansive and natural rather than loud or gourmand.
Collaborators
Victor Wong, Zoologist’s founder and creative director, worked closely with Chris Bartlett on the concept, helping steer the fragrance away from its original chai-spice direction toward a greener vision inspired by the elephant’s habitat and foraging behavior.
Zoologist’s story
Zoologist builds fragrances as imaginative studies of the animal kingdom, translating behavior, habitat and symbolism into scent rather than chasing conventional luxury codes. The house is known for giving independent perfumers room to create bold, conceptual compositions with a strong narrative core.
Elephant’s concept
Elephant was developed over more than a year and began as a concept centered on Indian spice, chai tea and sandalwood, reflecting the animal’s cultural association with India. As the project evolved, Bartlett and Victor Wong shifted the brief toward the elephant’s natural environment, opening the composition into fresh air, green leaves and a more spacious woody structure.
Extra info
Elephant was released in 2017 and was an Art & Olfaction Awards finalist in the Independent Category. Its formula was originally imagined as a chai-and-sandalwood perfume before the concept shifted toward the elephant’s habitat. The fragrance is presented as a 20% parfum extrait.