-
NIKE AIR MAX HISTORY: A VISUAL HISTORY OF NIKE AIR
The team at NIKE have just published NIKE AIR MAX HISTORY: A VISUAL HISTORY OF NIKE AIR in anticipation of the upcoming AIR MAX DAY on 26 MARCH.
The feature takes us through an interview with DAVE FORLAND, Nike’s Director of Cushioning Innovation, who began working on the project that would eventually result in the Nike Air Max back in 1985. Nike had already experimented with air cushioning previously (the NIKE AIR TAILWIND from 1978 is widely accepted to be the first model with this technology), but the good stuff was tucked away inside the foam sole unit. Adding a clear window not only looked good, but it also served as a marketable difference between Nike’s innovations and the competition. The bubble on the original NIKE AIR MAX 1 was perhaps one of the most defining aesthetic moments in running shoe history – and that’s no mean feat. In the ʻ80s, Forland constructed encapsulated Air-Sole prototypes by hand. He stumbled upon a critical moment in visible air history when he rotated the bag, placing the seams on the top and bottom instead of on the perimeter. In the words of the man himself, “At that exact moment, the light bulb turned on. I built a new prototype right there on the spot.”
Nike recently asked Forland to reminisce on the pivotal moments in the history of Visible Air – check the images and captions below and prepare yourself for AIR MAX DAY on 26 MARCH.
Nike Air Max 1 (1987)
“Before visible air, Air-Sole units like the one used in the Air Tailwind were becoming thinner and thinner to make the manufacturing process easier. What we wanted to get back to was injecting more air in to the sole to achieve a strong cushioning sensation under the foot. That thought process was the first time we started talking about it as ‘maximum air’ or ‘Max Air.'”
Nike Air Max 90 (1990)
“Unveiling more and more air was the primary directive for us. The Air Max 1 and 90 both had Air-Sole units in the forefoot, but it was completely encapsulated and we didn’t have a way to make the forefoot visible with the technology that we used to make the Air-Sole units at that time.”
Nike Air Max 180 (1991)
“The Air Max 180 was one of the most difficult Air Max sneakers to create. It was created with the same kind of tubing technology we used in the Air Max 1, but just like with the 90 and 93 we wanted to make the Air-Sole unit larger. The idea was to eliminate the foam under the Air-Sole unit and mate the outsole directly to the Air-Sole unit.”
Nike Air Max 93 (1993)
“We weren’t close to achieving full-length air until we developed the blow-molding technology, that was first was used on the Air Max 93. Blow molding is the process that gave us the ability to create Air-Sole units that were three-dimensional and held their own shape. Before that it was the air pressure that determined their shape, they would inflate like balloons.”
Nike Air Max 95 (1995)
“With this new method the air pressure would only add the cushioning properties to the Air-Sole unit. This allowed us to make the shapes needed to fit the curvature of the footwear’s forefoot. The first time we used this was in the Air Max 95, which still consisted of two separate Air-Sole units.”
Nike Air Max 97 (1997)
“We didn’t get [full length Max Air] until 1997. In that two-year span we figured out how to create an interconnected unit where the heel and the forefoot were integrated. To do this we had to invent a way to hold the molten film we used to create Air-Sole units long enough to close a full-length three-dimension mold on it.”
Nike Air Max Plus (1998)
“Tuned Air, used on the Air Max Plus, was more of the intersection of mechanics and air cushioning. Imagine Nike Shox and Nike Air combined. It works by adding mechanical hemispheres to the medial side of the Air-Sole unit, which increase stability in the shoe.”
Nike Air Max 360 (2006)
“The objective of the Air Max 360 was to try and completely remove foam from the shoe making equation…What we now wanted to achieve was the sensation of riding on air. Taking the place of foam in the 360 was a caged Air-Sole unit. In fact, the Air Max 360 was the only Air Max sneaker featuring Caged Air, Caged Air that is traditionally used in Zoom Air applications.”
Nike Air Max 2015 (2015)
“As I said before, over time foam will break down but air never loses its properties. Also with less foam we can put more air underfoot, which was one of our original goals as well. At this point we knew very well the performance attributes of Nike Air. It’s exciting. I remember the first blow-molded Air-Sole unit, we worked so hard on that and had no idea if people would embrace it.”
