NikeLab and the new Air Max 97 sneakers made with Riccardo Tisci
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by Angelo Ruggeri
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After the great success of the **NikeLab Dunk Lux Chukka x RT **presented last February,** the sportswear brand unveils the new sneakers made in collaboration with the designer from Taranto **Riccardo Tisci,** the **NikeLab Air Max 97 Mid x RT.**
“The future is based on honesty,” the designer says. “It seems to me that what people are looking for is something honest, something real. They want honest clothes, honest shoes… everything honest. That’s what they really want, in terms of design, color, and approach to fashion and dressing.” And it is precisely this value that has become the source of inspiration for the new footwear model, a reworking of the iconic Air Max 97.
“These shoes had a huge influence on Italian culture,” Tisci continues. “The Air Max 97 is an icon, the shoe of the youth of the nineties. At that time, I was working with DJs and music, and in the clubs, the people riding the wave were wearing Air Max. It was precisely in that significant period that sportswear arrived.” For this project, the designer has kept the soul of the sneaker: the shape, the workmanship, and the length. But he introduced personal elements: “I gave it more height, because I think that’s much more street.” The mid-top cut reflects the designer’s interest in basketball and skateboarding. The black leather and white contrasting stitching give a new structure to the model. Not only that. “There is a very young element in this shoe,” the creative concludes. “In the small pocket inside the tongue, you can keep your money.” Just like in the nineties.
The new NikeLab Air Max 97 Mid x R.T will be available from March 26th at NikeLab stores and online, on nike.com/nikelab.