Winter-white haute couture

Garfene Grandison, Gleaner Writer

The Jamaica 50 All White Collection which closed the show at StyleWeek's International Mecca of Style has been the talk of the town since the first piece hit the runway. The designer behind the line, Kevin O'Brien, ended the show on a high note with his unique representation of Jamaica through winter-white haute couture fashion.

According to O'Brien, when he was approached by Saint International's CEO, Deiwght Peters, to create a line centred around the Jamaica 50 theme, he felt very honoured and especially obligated to do a great job.

The designer has been visiting Jamaica for the past five years and his affection and respect for the country is evident. The line he was given the task of creating captured and portrayed his strong sentiments.

Rare Glimpse of Jamaica

When most people think of a couture line representing Jamaica, all white would probably be the last thing that comes to mind - O'Brien is not like most people. The inspired designer chose white for the line's colour palette because he wanted to portray a side of Jamaica that people rarely get to see. He explained that despite Jamaica's harsh reality, there is a subtle purity that nobody seems to notice. He also went on to add that he did not want to use the traditional Jamaican colours because he knew the story behind them.

Even though his line was a smash hit, the talented designer confessed that he was not able to portray his exact vision in the presentation. This, he said, was due to the short time which he had to create the line; 15 days to be exact. Even so, O'Brien received favourable feedback. Here's a look into the Jamaica-inspired all-white KOB creations.