Interview with Silvio Albini
Recently, I interviewed Silvio Albini. Mr. Albini's company is called The Albini group. This group owns five large textile firms and is the the largest European producer of fabrics.
Responses from Dott. Silvio Albini
1. The fabrics from the Thomas Mason Collection are luscious. How then have you imagined the accessories line?
When we accessorize, our personal style really has a chance to shine; those fine touches on an outfit give us an opportunity to showcase attention to detail, and even a bit of personal eccentricity. Whether it’s neckties, bow ties, scarves, or pocket squares, we want the man wearing Thomas Mason accessories to feel that he is representing himself authentically. We’ve envisioned the Thomas Mason accessories line with this in mind, striving to create pieces from standout to more subdued, and always with the highest degree of material refinement that characterizes our fabrics. We’ve utilized organically sourced 100% cotton, 100% linen, mixed linen cotton, and 100% silk materials in creating these accessories. The palette suits a variety of individual tastes, ranging from intense colors – like shades of blue and military tones, hints of ochre and sugar paper – to clearer tones like colonial, blues, greys, and neutrals. It’s those details that make an impression. Crafting this accessories line gives us the opportunity to both be bold and adventurous with our designs, as well as showcase the quality and care that go into our products in a succinct yet powerful way.
2. Is there a collection of fabrics you are most excited about at this moment?
It would be difficult to pick just one! Each collection represents a unique aspect of the Albini brand and expresses a different vision for our fabrics. That being said, I must say that I’m quite excited about Albini Donna, our women’s collection, which was recently exhibited to great excitement at the Milano Unica trade fair and Première Vision in Paris, along with the Albiate 1830, Thomas Mason, and our flagship Albini 1876 lines. Our design team took inspiration from Albini’s past, looking to archival content from the Fifties and Sixties to create a summery, hyper-feminine feel. We’ve utilized traditional, innovative and even unexpected materials in this line: voile, muslin, Giza 87 luxury Egyptian cotton, white fabrics with aspects of paper and talc, and of course classic, breathable linen.
Our Albiate 1830 line exhibits the cutting-edge application of our fabrics in distinctly modern and active designs. Denim, sport, and jacquard have historically been the protagonists of this brand. This season we’re excited to showcase more prints – Hawaiian, military, and Japanese, primarily – as well as sport shirts which range urban to pretty.
British inspired, with a touch of eccentricity, the Thomas Mason line is characterized by double twisted fabrics, crafted using the finest yarns from the extra-long staple Egyptian cotton. This season we display rigorous and colorful stripes, ideal for perfect and elegant shirts. The palette has been laid out in pure, primary colors, bright and full of personality.
And of course we also have Albini 1876, our classic “cotonificio” which encapsulates the Albini brand: producing high-quality fabrics fueled by intensive research, the highest standards, and development literally from the ground up—Egyptian Cotton, Supima Corcoran, and European Linen are used exclusively.