The Cruz Bueno 2016 Seasonless Collections Runway Show was a decadent evening of irreverence in fashion where we were invited to preview three of the label’s latest collections; Women’s and Men’s Prêt-à-Porter, and womenswear Demi-couture. The evening was an edgy viewing experience held on Marylebone’s Cavendish Square, and if the queue of eager fashion-elite waiting for the doors was anything to go by, it was a keenly anticipated event!

Cruz Bueno is still a young label on the scene, firmly rooted in the concept of bringing new fashion to “dress modern gods”, and we love that the label has branded their current 2016 collections as “Seasonless”, suggesting design and style that transcends the limitations of a mere slot in time. And we could easily add “timeless” as an adjective—the style is here and now, yet inspiration echoes back into antiquity to a divine era of gods and goddesses. We also like “Demi-couture”. So often we see couture as a canvas on display for the designer rather than an item of clothing, a creative playground that they have thrown all exuberance and no reality into. In itself this is not a bad thing, but in Bueno Cruz’ Demi-couture collection, we’ve found imagination and expression that we WANT TO WEAR—that we can SEE ourselves wearing.

When we caught up with Lucas (that’s Lucas Cruz Bueno), Artistic Director & Head Designer of the fashion house, we were able to hear in his own words how Greek Mythology and divine tales of gods and goddesses stepping down from Mount Olympus have coloured his inspiration. It’s easy to see this in the sexy chokers and cinching bands of clean geometrical designs cutting away to flowing crepe and sensually excessive folds of fabric. A woman could not possibly help but feel like a towering goddess wearing it. Off the shoulder, asymmetrical, and clever angles complete the looks with an edginess that is refreshing and bold.

And we know it’s a cliche with talks of Mount Olympus, but Lucas is really down to earth, he’s a sexy and captivating bundle of creativity who shares openly about his work and the label he has built. It’s worth mentioning that although on the catwalk the models evoked the designer’s divine inspiration in their ignorance of us mere mortals watching on in awe, it was also refreshing to hear at the after party how much admiration they have for Lucas, “He’s involved and detailed, aware of everyone around him and conscious every moment of how his work is represented, and that’s something rare in the industry”. Special mention also to the artistry of Zee Zak MUA, and the chillingly divine tunes of composer Fernando Montes, and LadyCPR who know how to put on a show!

Cruz Bueno is the embodiment of fashion for a fearless generation who is not afraid of expressing who they are.