Altaika – a Wearable Work of Art
Hand-crafted Sheepskin Vests Guaranteed to Turn Heads
About Altaika: We are a group of like-minded entrepreneurs who are enthusiastic about the outdoors and in love with the artistry of Central Asia’s handmade sheepskin vests from the Altai and Tien Shien Mountains. We treasure the change of seasons each year and the hustle and bustle that it produces.
We are non-conformists and contrarians.
As an expression of the soul of Central Asia, our Altaika vests capture the independence and magnetic qualities of the peoples of the region. In our pursuit to challenge conventional thinking, our Altaika vests represent for us an alternative to the same-old everyday exterior gear offered on the internet and malls across the West. Why not offer a sheepskin vest that brings to life the rich artisanal history and customs of a people enamored with their surroundings? Altaika is something out of the ordinary and unique.
Our idea was to explore through the medium of outdoor gear the significance of Central Asia’s artistic imagination. We felt that wearing an Altaika handcrafted sheepskin vests would not only provide warmth but bring out the hidden qualities and inner desires of a person – to be different.
Altaika testifies to the subtle attractiveness of Central Asia’s creative ingenuity, captured in the off-beat symphony of random-like sheepskin patches painstakingly stitched together as a medium to honor the work of past generations.
What’s more, we wanted to bring to life the techniques involved in creating sheepskin works-of-art. Fully aware that handmade gear is scarce, we felt it was worth the effort to try to draw people into a world of ancient artistry with all its imperfections and risks.
We created mismatched and chaotic color schemes and arrangements. In this way, we sought to open a channel for discussion between people.
In the process, Altaika explored the notion of individuality – the idea that each vest must be distinctive and one-of-a-kind just like each person. We wanted to draw out a person’s desire for self-confidence and specialness in a way that challenged today’s artificial and mechanized world of conformism and perfection – exactly what Altaika vests are designed to achieve. Our desire was to make a timeless and captivating form of artistic expression that was different, not run-of-the-mill and a bit rebellious like the contrarian in each of us.
We loved the fact that Altaika vests have so-called “imperfections” or variances that deviate by design from the boring perfection and uniformity of machine-made outdoor gear. But that’s what Altaika vests are all about.
Altaika believes that beauty does not equate with flawlessness and modernity. Instead, beauty is to be found in the imperfect and selflessness of individuality and singularity. As contrarians, we wanted to fight against the “lemming effect” – the mindless march over the cliff.
If you want a machine-made coat like the one everyone else in the world is wearing, you’ve come to the wrong website! If you don’t want to stand above and beyond the crowd, that’s fine. But if that’s the case, try the mall!
Altaika – a Wearable Work of Art
Hand-crafted Sheepskin Vests Guaranteed to Turn Heads