MEET CIAOKETI W/ KETI SHAHINI
04·11·21
CiaoKeti is a textile project by Keti Shahini, which started from her own family heritage he developed over time in a self-taught research path on the different weaving techniques.
The project is inspired and based on the study and 360 ° exploration of the elements present in nature, from the process of symbiosis between plants and fungi to the behavior of insects and animals in their natural habitats.
Like nature, CiaoKeti is also a project in constant evolution and change: never stationary but always fluid, irregular and alive.
All pieces are unique and handcrafted with love and patience, produced with carefully selected materials to convey a greater emphasis of sensations and emotions. Imperfections are actually precious elements to be considered an integral part of a unique product.
"What inspires me is nature, all of nature. A nature that is mostly wild and irregular and impossible to humanize or control".
What 2 words best describe CIAOKETI?
Fluid & irregular.
When did you start CIAOKETI, and what inspired you to?
CiaoKeti was born in 2017 as a search for a technique that belonged to me and with which I could express myself. Thanks to my grandmother, who worked in a weaving factory in Tirana during communism, I was able to enter the world of weaving and carpets
What inspires me is nature, all of nature. A nature that is mostly wild and irregular and impossible to humanize or control. I spend hours observing living beings of different species that communicate with each other, birds in flight, the way plants regenerate. Every living being has its own way of composing time and they coordinate with each other, thus giving new life to ways of describing and imagining the world. There is something magical and powerful in everything that is connected to nature and being able to simply stop, listen and observe fills me with peace and serenity that I would like to share with everyone through my carpets.
Tell us about the team behind CIAOKETI.
There is not much to say, for now there is only me, Keti Shahini and I take care of everything.
What’s playing on the office / studio stereo?
Haruomi Hosono with Mercuric Dance or Pauline Anna strom with Trans-Millenia Music and many others.
To us good design is about making a positive impact on people and the planet central to your design thinking. What does ‘good design’ mean to CIAOKETI?
For me, good design means having awareness and respect for the materials used to design any product. Try to harm the environment as little as possible by using eco-sustainable, reusable, recyclable materials that are not harmful to living beings.
We think more transparency and honesty is needed the fashion industry, so we always ask designers - what would you like to do better, or are you working on improving?
Every time I start a new carpet I think about what I could do to be more sustainable for example: dye the yarns myself to obtain the desired shade or color (only with dyeing plants or natural dyes), try to eliminate the materials as much as possible harmful to the environment and reduce the waste produced by the production of carpets.
Where is CIAOKETI going in the future?
I would like to learn new methods of weaving, new knots with which to create rugs.
Fortunately my whole project is based on research and research is always very unpredictable, it always leads me to an unexpected result and this is the thing I love, being able to trust uncertainty and make it a characteristic point.
As we all know, the fashion industry as a whole is responsible for huge environmental and social issues. How would you like to see the industry change and progress?
We are used to living in a society that tends to shorten time and needs with the "everything and now" thoughts process which creates anxiety and inconvenience when this is not respected. So before seeing the industry change, we should change the way people think when they think about the fashion industry. Only with a collective awareness will we be able to achieve a right change in the various sectors.
What advice would you give to people who want to be more responsible when they’re shopping?
Deepen and learn about the history and approach of the brand behind a product to see if it is similar to it. I think that to be more responsible you need curiosity and knowledge.
Thanks Keti!
You can find out more about CIAOKETI and shop their collection here.