ONE PERSONS’ HISTORY OF THE AIR MAX
“REVOLUTIONARY”
THE AIR MAX 1987.
the air max 1987 was the birth of what has been quoted as the most influential sneaker to exist. designed by tinker hatfield in 1987 with inspiration from ‘Le Centres George Pompidou’ in paris. the architecture of the building is based around the idea of being inside out, an idea that tinker took and turned into the air max 1987. the first shoe with an exposed air bubble to show the framework of the shoe and quickly set the standard for running sneakers in the industry. since this first creation there have been five major iterations to the classic design.
the air max 1987 has since become one of the highest selling sneakers worldwide and helped to put nike on the map in what used to be a fast developing running sneaker industry. even the former president george h w bush had a pair designed specifically for him when the sneaker was first released. what was first viewed as a running shoe quickly became fashionable and in today’s age there are rare pairs of air max that sell for as much as £2400, namely the air max amsterdam that was produced a mere 200 times worldwide.
“CLASSIC”
IMPROVEMENT
he air max 90 was a further model of the air max one, with the original white and infared colourway made to exaggerate the thicker air bubble. the air max 90 was intended to be an improvement to the air max one, however in ‘sneaker culture’ it has produced two different mindsets with people preferring different models between the two. the main differences in characteristics between the two is the narrower sole and smaller midsole.
THE AIR MAX 90.
“A WORK OF ART”
COLLAB ORATIO NS
collaborations are a big part of why the air max is as influential as it is today. the first company to collaborate with nike was atmos. atmos are a japanese-based retailer that created the popular “air max x atmos safari pack”. one of the most prominent features of this collaboration was the mini swoosh on the toebox that only debuted on a select number of air max retros. this makes this pair one to look out for as a sneakerhead.
The air max 90 was a further model of the air max one, with the original white and infared colourway made to exaggerate the thicker air bubble. the air max 90 was intended to be an improvement to the air max one, however in ‘sneaker culture’ it has produced two different mindsets with people preferring different models between the two. the main differences in characteristics between the two is the narrower sole and smaller midsole.
THE MAX 100 PROJECT
“THE PERFECT SHOE� the max 100 project was created by matt stevens and was originally just a personal side project on his website. he made 20 illustrations of air max; one a day for twenty days. it received a massive amount of praise among the sneaker community and was referenced as innovative and fresh. following the massive success of his personal project, matt decided to dedicate his efforts to a bigger project funded fully through kickstarter. a book of his personal illustraions (100 to be exact). he received the funds in a mere three weeks, and hence the max100 project was born. it was produced in a hardcover format showcasing his designs beside eachother. the first book of illustrations on a very unique sneaker.
60% OF AIR MAX SALES ARE MEN 40% OF AIR MAX
SALES ARE WOMEN
THE NIKE AIR MAX HAS COLLABORATED WITH MORE COMPANIES THAN ANY OTHER SNEAKER EVER PRODUCED.
CHRIS MAHONEY THE NIKE AIR MAX 1987 - PRESENT