DJ Steve Aoki collaborates with Candiani denim Italian manufacturer
Steve Aoki and Alberto Candiani have been friends for 10 years through Aoki’s late manager, Michael Theanne. It only took them 8 of those to find the time to collaborate on a project.
Though the idea was new to Aoki, sustainable fashion was still a relatively new concept to most. And in 2012 after a tour of the Candiani denim factory, the Grammy-nominated DJ was hooked to the idea of sustainable denim.
The Alberto Cadiani and Steve Aoki denim collab
Aoki and Alberto, the 4th generation manufacturer, are stitching together Dim Mak x Candiani EC-01 denim made from recycled cotton fabric and upcycling techniques [ReGEN Denim – a selvedge fabric made with recycled cotton].
Still, they are conscious of how they finish the denim. This includes a laser print finish for the artwork submitted by Aoki’s Dim Mak EC-01 team, and wash.
The two recently went off during a video of a Worldwide Talk, where the two friends, and moderator Sarah Kent, spoke about the collab on the Fashinnovation platform online.
The Fashinnovation platform is where Aoki and Alberto expressed in full scale their collaborative effort and the organic process behind their friendship and the denim they have created. Candiani has been making denim even before it was a thing some 82 years ago.
The company started with Alberto’s Great Grandfather in 1932, where they manufactured workwear at the time. It was his Grandfather though, who discovered denim and the focus on denim grew.
Now, the focus is more on how to lower the footprint by neutralizing the process of making denim, and in-turn finding regenerative solutions and recycling processes. Launching DIm Mak x Candiani EC-01 is the brainchild birthed from their vision.
Alberto gripes at the slow pace of the industry to take on sustainability, as the claims for no demand where stern. A frustration that warranted him to create and offer the consumer an alternative to the current supply. This is where Aoki and his music talents come in…