Nike Air Max 1 “Sketch to Shelf” Pack

QUICK TAKE:

Nike will be dropping a pack of Nike Air Max 1 sneakers in a Tinker Hatfield sketch-inspired pack dubbed “Sketch to Shelf” comprised of “The Schematic” (White/black) and “Tinker’s Sketch” (red/white/grey). The pack includes two ‘work-in-progress’-style Nike Air Max 1 colorways that serve as a three-dimensional rendering of some of the original sketches for the iconic model.

DESIGN:

Both shoes feature ‘work-in-progress’ style that tells the story of how the Nike Air Max 1 model came to be. Each pair showcases a different part of the design process. The white and black “Schematic” model features clean leather, but with the specific patterns and measurements Hatfield painstakingly added to each detail of the shoe. On the red, grey, and white “Tinker’s Sketch” model, suedes are rough and featured ‘painted-on’ coloring, showing the process of coloring in such an immaculate silhouette. Both models feature custom ‘Tinker Hatfield’ signature logos on the heels and hand-drawn or alternate tags on the insole and tongue.

ANALYSIS:

These two models both draw from themes Nike has been playing with all year. First, the brand once again pays homage to ‘OG’ designs, creating colorways based on the original Nike Air Max 1 drawings, similar to the recently announced Nike Cortez “Shoe Dog” pack that features original Nike logos on classic Nike Cortez silhouettes. The ode to the classic university red colorway reminds of the Nike Air Max 90 “Mixtape”, which also paid homage to classic AM90 models via hand-scrawled listing on the outsole of the shoe.

Secondly, the Swoosh continues to expand upon the Virgil Abloh-inspired ‘work-in-progress’ styling. Nike has released their own mash-up styles featuring exposed foams and double vulcanized soles, but this time they just re-use the concept of designer writing on the shoes. In this case, Tinker Hatfield’s design notes are seen on each pair.

Similarly to the Nike Cortez “Shoe Dog” pack, some consumers could see this release as slightly gimmicky. But to true Tinker Hatfield fans, the chance to own Hatfield’s original design ideas is a unique opportunity. Besides, with all of the collaborations with popular TV shows and other loosely connected subcultures, something like this that is most appealing to knowledgeable sneakerheads is rare.

RELEASE INFORMATION:

This pack is set to hit select Nike retailers and Nike.com on July 13th. At this time we are unsure of price, but check back for more details in the future.