In recent years, New York’s fashion scene has set the scene for some of the industry’s buzziest brands, with their triumphs the results of the skills of an incredibly tapped-in class of designers and the support of their loyal, very vocal communities. The “for us by us” mentality of home-grown brands such as Telfar and Luar has proven victorious in fashion’s current landscape, a triumph of community-driven design. And then there’s Theophilio, a Brooklyn-based contemporary fashion brand by Edvin Thompson.
In the past three years, Theophilio – first founded in 2016 – has experienced a series of highs that most young brands could only dream of. In September 2021, the brand held its first NYFW runway show, AIR JAMAICA. Two months later, he won the CFDA Award for American Emerging Designer of the Year. Last year, he presented his most recent collection titled, HOMECOMING at the SS23 edition of NYFW and soon after launched a capsule collection with Luxury Stores at Amazon. The brand was name-checked with a fashion placement on the since-axed Gossip Girl reboot and he created an entire look in collaboration with Black Fashion Fair and the estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat alongside the King Pleasure exhibition.
“It’s very difficult to process all of this,” Edvin shares over Zoom. “In fashion, things happen so fast. There’s always a constant schedule with deadlines to meet and what not. What really keeps me centred and in the moment are things like going to the Garment District” – the destination he’s en route to when we speak – “and being part of the process. I speak to the people that I work with on a daily basis, so I’m always reminded where I’m at and where I’m going.”
Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Edvin moved to the US in 2002 at the age of nine. He learned to sew from his mentors Mya Moto and Wynter Alex while living in Atlanta, briefly, as a young adult, and eventually moved to Brooklyn in 2014. When his prospects of attending FIT didn’t pan out, it was his community of creatives that pushed him to start the brand in 2016.
Theophilio is easily one of the most coveted young brands operating out of New York right now, wich is not lost on its founder. However, although Thompson has been embraced by the industry with high honours, coveted opportunities, and hyper-visibility — being a Black designer also comes with it’s own set of challenges that can include a lack of access and resources, scarce opportunities, all on top of navigating an industry that historically not been as welcoming to Black creators in comparison to their white counterparts. “Many of us come to America and we speak about the American dream. The way I’ve achieved it is an inspiration,” he says. “I think when people see me, they see themselves represented and that’s why there’s been so much support behind the brand,” Edvin continues. “I always think of the work that I do and how I tell stories that are very honest. I think that’s the way to go about it, you know? For me, it’s all about the feeling. It’s all about making people feel good and I think that people appreciate that.”
The honesty at the brand’s heart owes much to the fact that the Theophilio universe is a sartorial autobiography. Edvin creates to reflect a wholesome representation of the island, sans pastiche, as a counterpoint to the very distinct aesthetic that comes to mind when one thinks of “Jamaican fashion.” Edvin designs within a colour palette to emphasise the earthy, vibrant, and decadent colours of the Jamaican countryside, an area where he spent time after moving from Kingston. Of course, there are call backs to the more obvious motifs of island fashion – think: mesh, party dresses, and low-cut tops – but even the most obvious things are done with care and reinvention in mind. At its heart, Theophilio is an unabshed love letter to the designer’s homeland, threaded together by his experiences living in the United States. “I definitely think my brand is very sexy, very sophisticated and I think it plays on anyone’s personality, extending and championing who they are and the essence of the person that they want to become, “ he says.
In the latest collection, HOMECOMING, you can sense that Edvin has found his design footing and sharpened his aesthetic vision. It’s replete with strong and sexy (emphasis on the sexy) pieces, many of which have been featured in major photoshoots, on magazine covers and worn by celebrities like Keke Palmer and Joan Smalls, a big supporter of the brand. In the brand’s first official campaign, Thompson wanted to invoke a sense of joy and celebrate the trials and tribulations of his life and what it took to reach this particular moment. The sequined separates featured in the campaign are washed in Jamaican colours and evoke the “life-of-the-party” nature of Thompson’s designs and this shoot, in particular. You can’t mention celebration without mentioning J’ouvert, which is chanelled through a towering, feathered headdress atop the head of one model, an effort that rounds out the campaign, thematically. “Even through issues and problems we found a way to celebrate,” he says. “When friends and loved ones passed, we celebrated their lives and had a toast.”
“We had friends high and low that were a part of the collection. People who work back of the house with me, assistants who helped with the show were all front and centre in the campaign — not just models. Even Taofeek [Abijako] who is a friend of mine and the designer of Head of State was a part of it – it was such a cool moment, because I got to see him be himself and be able to actually do things like this. Carlos [Nazario, the campaign’s stylist and i-D’s fashion director] was really intentional about collaboration, and his ideas really merged with what I’ve been growing at Theophilio.”
While at the top of his game, the spark of creativity within Thompson has not waned. There are big ideas that exist within him and many things to look forward to, like finally tapping into the brand’s signature bags. He has his eye on the long game as he revels in the journey to conquering the industry on his own time and on his own terms. “We run tings, tings don’t run we!” he has been known to exclaim. And from the looks of it, there couldn’t be a truer statement.
Credits
Images courtesy of Theophilio
Photography Oliver Hadlee Pearch
Styling Carlos Nazario