RTW pioneer, fashion designer Larrie Silva, 74

LARRIE SILVA, pioneer of ready-to-wear (RTW) Filipino fashion, died last week on May 14. He was 74.

Born on Sept. 20, 1950, Mr. Silva was studying fashion and working at Balmain in Paris in the 1970s. There, he was discovered by Rustan’s co-founder Gliceria Tantoco.

In an article he wrote for the Philippine Daily Inquirer in 2019 (“How Glecy Tantoco chose me for Rustan’s first local designer brand”), he said, “For a 26-year-old wannabe, the thought of meeting the founder of Rustan’s was wishful thinking. One day, seated next to a window in my hole-in-the-wall apartment in Paris overlooking the Notre-Dame Cathedral, I thought, ‘Why not?’”

Under Mrs. Tantoco’s wing, Mr. Silva helmed Lady Rustan, the luxury store’s home brand, still selling to this day. This set the wheels in motion for him to plant the seeds for ready-to-wear clothes in the Philippines, at that time still heavily reliant on the made-to-order designer model. Under Rustan’s, Mr. Silva also created Silvastar and Silvano.

He retired in 2003, but not before supermodels like Ana Bayle and Pat Cleveland walked in his creations, at a gala dedicated to his work by Rustan’s.

His friend, publicist Joselito “Toots” Tolentino said in a Facebook post, “We will miss you dearest close friend Larrie Silva. All the memories from the many decades-long friendship will always be remembered. Rest in peace.”

Society figure and writer Lorenzo Leviste said in a post in the same platform, “Designer Larrie Silva enters immortality. May he live in eternal love and happiness.” — JL Garcia