A pillar of sneaker culture, the Nike Air Max 90 remains one of the most significant designs since the brand’s founding. And while its OG colorways are some of the most significant, the silhouette has paved its way with a number of both collaborations and noteworthy general releases in the past few decades.
Released in 1990 as its name would imply, the Air Max 90 effectively became Nike’s second flagship sneaker after the Air Max 1. It was designed by architect Tinker Hatfield whose initial imagining turned into the original “Infrared” colorway, a scheme considered to be the most popular and the most legendary. This color blocking then went on to be the blueprint for future releases, which have garnered their own dedicated followings.
In the years since its inception, the Air Max 90 has also appeared in a number of unique variations inclusive of FlyEase mods and ACG palettes. The Duck Camo colorway — which recently made its way back to the spotlight thanks to not one but three modern versions — quickly became an icon thanks to its association with Japanese retailer atmos, a now monumental imprint who later released the beloved “We Love Nike” pack as a noteworthy follow-up. UNDEFEATED, then, raised their strike logo flags atop the silhouette as well, with both motorsports inspirations and some futuristic modifications.
And though 2020 has been riddled with injustice and viral outbreaks, the year has been relatively kind to the Air Max 90 early on. As a celebration of the model’s 30th anniversary, Nike provided it a total reconstruction that made it that much closer to the OG pairs. They slimmed the overall profile down by a large margin through tweaks to the panel scale, toe box height, and heel counter. After an initial Triple White release, the newly recrafted AM90 took a tour through its many iconic appearances.
