This year’s release of the Nike Air Max 1 Premium Retro “atmos Elephant” marked the first product of Nike’s “Vote Forward” campaign which began last year on Air Max Day. In 2016, we were given an opportunity to vote for our favourite Air Max design of all-time and the shoes with the highest number of votes would be re-released in 2017.
For 2017’s “Vote Forward” campaign, Nike decided to go one step further and invited 12 creatives and Air Max enthusiasts from around the world to their World Headquarters in Beaverton to give these select individuals the opportunity to re-imagine the Nike Air Max into their own unique creations. This group of twelve were selected from nine different countries and here are the results of their re-imagination:
Alexandra Hackett (London):
Alexandra’s blend of old & new, with elements from the Air Max 1, 90, 180, 93, 95, 97, Plus 360 & 2015.
Artemy Lebedev (Moscow):
Artemy’s take on the iconic Air Max 97 silhouette with a zip-up shroud covering the laces, reminiscent of the Air Zoom Flight The Glove, as well as notes of the Air VaporMax.
Bunyamin Aydin (Istanbul):
Bunyamin’s homage to Istanbul with the incorporation of Turkish rug designs and pony hair on an Air Max 97 upper, along with the addition of the Air VaporMax.
Clement Balavoine (Amsterdam):
Clement’s combination of his favourite Air Max designs: the Air Max 90 upper with the tongue and tooling of the Air Max 97.
Fabrikr (Seoul):
Inspired by sneakerheads wrapping their shoes in plastic, as well as paying homage to the morning fog in Portland, the group at Fabrikr chose to wrap the Air Max 1 OG Red in a transparent material.
Kyle Ng (Los Angeles):
Kyle, an artist and designer by trait, hand-painted an Air Max 1 Ultra Flyknit to deliver a truly unique and personal design.
Lourdes Villagómez (Mexico City):
Lourdes, an amazing Central American artist, takes elements of the Air Max 1 and Air Max 90, and then incorporates the forests of Central America, specifically the Quetzal Bird, throughout the design.
Naotaka Konno (Tokyo):
Naotaka’s re-imagination of the Air Max 97 includes a flyknit upper, reflective material, and a glow in the dark Air Max 97 airbag, all inspired by the Tokyo night scene.
Sean Wotherspoon (Los Angeles):
Sean and his team at Round Two have gained notoriety for their affection for vintage apparel and shoes, specifically, vintage Nike designs. This design consists of a corduroy Air max 97 upper that will fray over time, and an Air Max 1 sole.
Shangguan Zhe (Shanghai):
Shangguan actually created an entirely new and unique upper, inspired by the wing of a dragon fly, and incorporated that with the Air VaporMax tooling.
Tianzhou Chen (Beijing):
Tianzhou is another individual who created an entirely new and unique upper, with elements from ski boots, bugs, plate armour, and the Kobe 9 Elite. This creative upper design is topped with the Air VaporMax tooling.
Venus X (New York):
Venus X takes a completely futuristic approach to this design challenge and took an Air Max 97 upper to the next level by creating an over-the-knee zip-away component.
Voting began on March 18th and will continue until March 25th, with the winner being announced on Air Max Day, March 26th. You can cast your vote on Nike.com or through the Nike+ SNKRS app in North America! The winner will have this amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and see their unique creation come to life in 2018!
Jonathan is our digital content lead based out of Toronto. He covers launch events & product reviews, while producing original opinion pieces.
He is known for his in-depth recaps of media-exclusive events & detailed summaries of the latest products.
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Email: jonathan.namyun.kim@gmail.com / Instagram: @iamjonathankim / Twitter: @iamjonathankim View all posts by Jonathan Kim
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