NIKE78 at london design festival 2010

‘ABUKU’

using sports as a creative starting point, a group of artists and designers have been asked to challenge the function of a pair of NIKE shoes. initiated by uk graphic designer paul jenkins, 78 pairs of nike shoes were distributed to creatives worldwide from multi-disciplinary backgrounds. an exhibition titled ‘nike78‘ showcasing the outcomes is planned for london design festival 2010.

‘ABUKU’ by japanese graphic studio wieden + kennedy tokyo LAB received the AIR MAX 360 for their challenge. as the feature emphasized on this model was its air-sole, the studio decided to create a final project based on the concept of air.

the making of ‘ABUKU’ by wieden + kennedy tokyo lab

‘what we did was keep the soles filled with air as is, but take off the upper part of the shoe and use it to mold a clear material into that shape. this became an aquarium for goldfish, a representative aquarium fish in japan. we hope that the people who see this

small aquarium built on nike air will stop to think about the artificial/natural environments that surround us and the connection between humans and other living creatures. ‘ – WKTL

‘made for’

upon observing that he smoked more in his nike trainers than doing actual exercise, UK designer and photographer jason turner created ‘made for’, a shoe that exaggerates on the unhealthy habits of humans.

‘I can safely say that I also spend more time smoking in my shoes each day than doing proper exercise. the photograph is an exaggeration of this mentality, done in the hope to inspire more sport. so next time you look down at your sad pristine nikes when having a smoke or a drink, just remember what they were made for.‘ JT

‘the takeover’

UK designer nicola ryan‘s ‘the takeover’ features a skin that breaths, absorbs, stretches and ages. like organic matter, its existence is a fine balance between life and decay.

‘the takeover’ by nicola ryan

‘nike free your mind MK 1’

‘NIKE free your mind MK 1’ by UK global agency wieden + kennedy london started from the concept of athletes who trained barefoot in order to make their feet stronger. upon playing with the model they received, the studio soon noticed that the hyper-extended sole took on the appearance of grey matter, each section of the sole resembling the lobes of a human brain. they knew from this point that they wanted to create something that was centered around the human brain and sport.

part of their intention was to take this as far as possible and subvert it to the ridiculous. they wanted audiences to ask themselves if a healthy brain was more important than a healthy body? and if there was a point of a healthy body without a healthy brain? this piece seeks to get people thinking about the power and importance of sport in making humans feel good.

‘100m nikes’

the 100 metre sprint is arguably the most iconic of all the olympic events. it defines the fastest men and women on the planet, with nike carrying countless olympians across the finish line. here, these nike shoes have been removed from their conventional context and crafted into the length of 100m; a symbol of the sporting feats that athletes have achieved. this piece titled ‘100m nikes’ was done by paul cooke.

‘marathon cake’ image  bullion productions

‘marathon cake’ by erica dorn is an edible negative calorific equivalent of a full-length marathon. it represents both the hard work put in and the ever-sweet reward after all the hard work. currently available in white and dark chocolate with buttercream and raspberry laces.

the making of ‘marathon cake’ by erica dorn

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production process

‘trainers for vouyers’ by this is studio

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‘these shoes are made for kicking’

upon receiving shoes that did not seem to fit in with the theme of ‘sport’, UK graphic designer stephen cheetham wanted to recycle the shoes into something that underscored the idea of physical activity through its aesthetics. the result was a football titled ‘these shoes are made for kicking’ which reuses the materials from the original shoes and its packaging.

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materials used