The Ten was a design project between Nike and Virgil Abloh, announced on August 21, 2017: ten footwear silhouettes reworked in two groups of five, Revealing and Ghosting. Nike said it took about 10 months from ideation to release. The first five shoes went on sale at NikeLab stores in New York, London, Milan, and Paris in September, and the full collection followed in November. We made it internally, Nike Brand Design EMEA with Nike Sportswear, and Nike Brand Design briefed and creative directed the outside agencies.
Why it looks like this
Revealing. Nike said the first group “was designed to look accessible: hand-cut, open-source and reconstructed.” It covered the Air Jordan I, Air Max 90, Air Presto, Air VaporMax, and Blazer Mid. Dezeen reported that labels and Swooshes moved to new positions and red zip ties ran through the laces.
Ghosting. Nike said the second group “was designed with translucent uppers to further the idea of revealing.” It covered the Converse Chuck Taylor, Zoom Fly SP, Air Force 1 Low, React Hyperdunk 2017, and Air Max 97. Dezeen noted the see-through look gave the group its name.
A shoe you could make. Abloh told Nike he wanted to amplify the shoes’ handmade quality: by “using tools you have at home, you could also make this shoe.” Dezeen quoted him placing the originals “on the same level as a sculpture of David or the Mona Lisa.”
Most of the creative decisions were made in the first three hours.
Virgil Abloh, designer, source
