Nike Air Max Day 2021 on 26 March is getting closer with every day of our '10 Days of Air Max'! 34 years ago Nike's very first running shoe revolutionised the market with the famous "Air Max" technology. Next week, we all celebrate the birth of a trendsetting sneaker series and the one and only Nike Air Max 1! And it's this iconic sneaker silhouette that we're picking up from today. You've probably already seen it in the headline, we're beaming you back to 2007 to one of the most unforgettable Air Max 1 collaborations ever: atmos x Nike Air Max 1 'Elephant'!
atmos and Nike...
…are already long-standing partners who have worked together many times and have conjured up many unforgettable sneaker designs. Today, the heads of atmos are known for creating incredible designs. But since the very first collaboration with Nike in 2002, it's one model in particular that stands out and melts every sneakerhead's heart.
Of course, we are talking about the atmos x Nike Air Max 1 'Elephant'. The sneaker, which celebrated its first release worldwide in 2007, has become an indispensable part of the grandstand of the best sneaker collaborations of all time and has adorned every collector's shelf ever since.
The darling of the community
In 2016, on the occasion of Air Max Day and Nike's Vote Back campaign, the sneaker community had the chance to vote for the return of an Air Max design that would celebrate a comeback the following year. And it came as it had to and the majority of the community voted the 'Elephant' from the collabo by Nike and atmos out of 100 other Air Max legends as the winner.
But what is so special about the design that it is so popular with sneakerheads all over the world?
This is what lies behind the unbeatable design
For the creative director of atmos, the decision for a design on the Air Max 1 was actually quite easy at the time. Because he didn't have to invent anything new. On the one hand, this is because the entire atmos team were huge fans of the 'Elephant' print at the time, which was used a lot on the Air Jordan 3. In addition, the idea of combining an elephant motif borrowed from nature with the Air Max was an inspiration that Hirofumi Kojima had long before the collaboration came about in 2007.
At that time, there wasn't a single Air Max that had animal prints on it! Koji and his team felt that all the elephant prints on the Jordan 3 silhouettes were the symbol of modern street life at the time. So they really wanted to put this print on their Air Max 1. And where there's an elephant, there's usually water! That's why the heads at atmos decided on an eye-catching jade-coloured Swoosh.
The 'Elephant' is definitely a colourway that made history and revolutionised all upcoming designs from Nike. Just think of all the AM1's that were released afterwards with animal prints or the Elephant Dunk from 2020.
But of course, animal prints are not all Nike has to offer! Stay tuned, because our "10 Days of Air Max" continue daily and we show you some of the most historic events from the Air Max series of the sportswear brand from Oregon! Check out our daily sneaker news and celebrate with us until Air Max Day!
Of course, every celebration comes with gifts! That's why we have some specials for you here 🥳🥳 :
