Jamaican pride is reflected in the Spring/Summer fashion collection from Theophilio. The designer’s creative director and designer Edvin Thompson used the former national airline of the country, Air Jamaica, as the inspiration for the collection. Even the invitation ticket for the Theophilio show was an Air-Jamaica-type plane ticket to remind customers of Brooklyn-based designer Edvid Thompson’s Jamaican heritage. Thompson has frequently been inspired by his roots, often using Rastafarian motifs and crochet knits in his line, but he describes his new 2022 Spring/Summer collection as the “most confident and unabashed celebration of Jamaica’s spirit and iconography” he has ever displayed.

Air Jamaica was the first airline Thompson flew when he moved to the United States in 2002. The airline provided a rich Jamaican cultural experience, offering its passengers a veritable showcase of Jamaica through its food and the colorful uniforms worn by its personnel.

Now, Thompson’s airline-inspired menswear and womenswear presents a bold range of colors, including lime green, turquoise, and orange. The Rastafari flag colors of red, green, and gold are featured as well, and the first two looks in the 2022 collection reflect design influenced by the flight attendants’ uniforms, including the characteristic berets.

While the colors are definitely Jamaican, the silhouettes of the new collection are “quintessentially New York,” emphasizing “stretchy, body-skimming, and confidence-raising” elements. The womens collection includes tie-dyed knit catsuits and crochet slips. In the womenswear collection, Theophilio features an array of garments made of mesh, including short dresses and body-contouring catsuits, which are designed to highlight style elements of Jamaica’s culture. The collection also includes several two-piece sets and silk dresses with bustiers in contrasting colors.

The menswear collection ranges from matching lime-green sets with elongated torsos and very long sleeves to garments highlighted by dark denim garments, an oversized denim jacket with a green lining and a green TP logo displayed on the back. The jacket is paired with matching jeans embossed all over with the TP graphic. The 2022 Spring/Summer collection also features a denim set with a short-sleeved shirt and matching shorts, along with a set constructed from a soft hybrid denim material striped in the colors of wheat, light green, and orange.

It was noted that after the show, the models, who typically race to get into their own clothes remained to take selfies in Thompson’s garments, indicating their approval of the line.

Photo By Braylen Dion/Theophilio Instagram