NIKE AIR MAX 1: A GROUNDBREAKING SILHOUETTE.
NIKE AIR MAX 1: THE MAKING OF A LEGEND.
In 1986, Nike faced a period of stagnation and aimed to revitalize its product lineup. The Beaverton-based brand enlisted Tinker Hatfield, a trained architect and footwear designer, to create a model that would rejuvenate Phil Knight's company. Tinker drew inspiration from the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris for his design. He was captivated by the air bubbles on the building's exterior and decided to incorporate a similar feature into his new model. Thus, the Nike Air Max 1 OG was born, the first Nike pair to showcase a visible air bubble in the midsole. The Air Max technology was also applied to other designs Hatfield created for the Air Jordan line, such as the Air Jordan 3 and Air Jordan 4.
THE EMERGENCE OF THE ICONIC AIR MAX 1.
First released on March 26, 1987, the shoe quickly gained international acclaim and became the epitome of fashionable footwear. Each year on March 26, Nike celebrates the silhouette's anniversary with "Air Max Day," a special occasion that sees the creation of new pairs and special editions like the Air Max 1 Evolutions of Icons, which features the iconic models from the range. In 1990, Tinker Hatfield introduced the Air Max 90, a model with a more aggressive silhouette and larger air bubble than the Air Max 1. Its OG colorway is the Air Max 90 Infrared. Later, in 1995, Sergio Lozano unveiled the human anatomy-inspired Air Max 95. Two years after that, Christian Tresser drew from Japanese high-speed trains to design the iconic Air Max 97. Continuously innovating, the Air Max range expanded with the Air Max 98, marking Sergio Lozano's return at the helm.
ICONIC AIR MAX 1 COLLABORATIONS: PATTA, CLOT, SEAN WOTHERSPOON, PARRA, TRAVIS SCOTT.
The Air Max 1 is one of the few sneaker models that has enjoyed such enduring popularity. As a true icon of pop culture and the streetwear movement, numerous entities have had the opportunity to collaborate with Nike on the silhouette, creating unique limited-edition models. Among its most renowned collaborators is the legendary Amsterdam-based shop Patta, which is responsible for some of the model's most exceptional packs, such as the 2009/2010 5th Anniv Pack featuring the iconic Air Max 1 Chlorophyll. More recently, in 2021, the Dutch label presented "The Wave" pack, consisting of four iterations: Monarch, Noise Aqua, Rush Maroon, and Black Grey. Artists like Parra, Edison Chen with his label Clot, and Sean Wotherspoon have also reimagined the model. In 2022, the charismatic Travis Scott took his turn to reinvent Tinker Hatfield's design with the Baroque Brown and Saturn Gold editions.
