A 1987 sketch for a proto sneaker that inspired the Nike Air Max 1 has been brought to life for the first time.
Recently, Nike Design Director Graeme McMillan rescued a sketch from the Department of Nike Archives, where it had been sitting since 1987. Drawn by Nike's legendary lead designer Tinker Hatfield, the sketch was for the Nike Air Max Zero, a concept that eventually evolved into the brand’s ever-popular Air Max 1. But surprisingly, the shoe was never produced until now.
"I thought it looked like a more contemporary version of the Air Max 1," McMillan said in a press release.
So why wasn't the sneaker produced back in the ‘80s? According to Hatfield, it was just ahead of its time, both aesthetically and technically. "The technology and materials available at the time—such as the visible air sole units—weren’t advanced enough to execute the original vision," he said. Now that technology has caught up with this vision, McMillan and Hatfield have worked together to produce the Air Max Zero.
from fastcodesign