Apparel | Tuesday, April 20, 2010

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ON THE AVENUE: Robin Tomas at the Philippines Center

By Nancy Boyd

NEW YORK—He’s one of our favorite designers.

He has a following in the Philippines.

And he’s getting quite a following here too.

As you’ll recall, Robin Tomas was not only a finalist in the recent Supima Competition for Emerging Designers, he was the winner of the Competition to reinvent the men’s T-shirt and is currently in negotiations to have that winning design sold as part of the Supima Collection at Bloomingdale’s.

Last week, he was honored by a curated exhibition of his work at The Philippines Center on Fifth Avenue, which devoted its main window to Tomas’s women’s wear.

And then gave him an opening bash to boot.

And, if you happen to be strolling down Fifth Avenue anytime soon, here’s what you’ll be reading about one of our favorite designers in the window of the Philippines Center:

A statement about modern elegance, luxurious fabric, whimsical touches and fanciful adornments create garments made for the confident woman. A trailblazing sophisticate who dresses to set her true persona free.

Born and raised in the Philippines, Robin Tomas was schooled at Parsons School of Design. He was an intern at Valentino and Anna Sui and later made his way as an established designer at some of the best U.S. labels. In 2009, at the height of the global fiscal crisis, he launched the 50-piece Tomas Collection in Manila to great media accolades—and commercial success.

(On display is the finale piece from the 2009 show—a fully hand-beaded bustier and duchesse satin ball skirt with exposed tulle.)

A year later in New York City, Tomas wins the Supima Design Competition Award for “the best reinvention of the T-shirt.” Supima, a U.S. nonprofit organization, was founded in 1954, to promote the use of American pima cotton worldwide. The annual competition is held to showcase the next generation of talent in design and creativity and explore the possibilities of Supima cotton.

The winning Tomas-designed shirt will be part of the Supima Collection at Bloomingdale’s in Fall 2010.

See his creations at robintomas.com.

Photos by Giulia Piccari