Any curious onlooker, including the throngs of Kingston College students and supporters who witnessed the April 14 parade downtown, would have been struck by the exquisite artistic décor bedecking the trailer that captured the school’s journey over the years. 

The parade coincides with KC’s school’s 100th anniversary and the bestowing of the keys to the City of Kingston to the school,

Vivid iconography highlighted by imagery capturing the school’s exploits at Champs, which the school won for a record 36th time this year, were on glorious display.

The branding of the trailer was designed and produced by Delano McFarlane of Mack and Mack Innovations, the creative studio that is redefining event production locally with its hallmark class and creativity. 

A gifted creative force, Delano’s talent was recognised from an early age and he was drafted while still a student at Meadowbrook High School to assist in teaching O & A Level Art to his contemporaries there.

As a teenager, he became the youngest book illustrator for Longman’s Caribbean Ltd., the British-based publishing house, generating artwork for a number of children’s books utilised in the Jamaican and wider Caribbean school curricula.

McFarlane has collaborated on some of the most imaginative advertising and behavior-change campaigns in Jamaica’s contemporary history. These include the signal Courts Millionaire campaign, which captured the dreams, thoughts and support of millions of Jamaicans along with Michael ‘Boysie’ Landon; and he was instrumental in developing the first Jamaican HIV/AIDS campaign, including having his image used as the face of HIV which was a brave thing to do at the time when fear and stigma about the dreaded illness was at its highest.

The campaign, which was sponsored by the Jamaican government and a number of private sector and international agencies, went a far way in correcting the many inaccuracies about the disease.

“Some people thought that merely by being in the HIV/AIDS ads I could contract the disease,” Delano quips. He also designed the advertising imagery for the introduction of E-10 gas (87/90 gasolene).

Delano’s versatility extends to voicing and directing iconic radio serials and ads, including ‘Ma B’s Family‘ on JIS Radio, while serving as creative director there. 

Delano has worked with some of Jamaica’s leading advertising agencies including Sign Tech Jamaica Ltd., one of the largest outdoor advertising agencies and at Advertising & Marketing (Jamaica) Ltd. Grimax Advertising, Dawn Ritch and Associates, leading opinion writer and (AdMark), then Jamaica’s leading advertising and marketing agency, led by creative guru, the late Professor Arnold Foote, where he worked on campaigns for clients including Appliance Traders Ltd. and Century National Bank, and Paul Chen Young’s Eagle Group, among many others, as a creative director and production manager in some instances.   

Included among his many firsts, is designing the staging for the epic Sony/Hollywood style reception at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel honouring Shabba Ranks for winning the first Grammy Award in the reggae category, put on by the then Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange/ Clifton Specialist Dillon run Clifton Specs Shang Productions; and production work on the popular Sting Dance Hall/Reggae show, among other entertainment productions.

His illustrative and designing talents can also be seen in various murals including managing the tribute to Jamaica’s cricketing greats at Sabina Park, at the former Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) buildings, which now house the PBCJ offices and at numerous churches and other buildings across Jamaica.

Delano’s advice is highly sought after, serving as a designer and adjudicator for the Jamaica 60 Festival Float Parade and numerous artistic competitions.

He was also the creative mind behind the Jamaica 60 Independence Festival Parade and currently serves as a creative consultant to the tourism and culture ministers, Edmund Bartlett and Olivia Grange.

He recently designed the covers for a number of Bartlett’s books.