Nike commissions seven creatives to design Air Max trainers inspired by art movements

Nike has commissioned seven young artists to create bespoke artworks and matching trainers for the launch of its new Air Max 270 React shoe. Each of the designs has been inspired by modern art movements from pop art to Bauhaus, op art and psychedelia, with colours from the designs carried over to the collection of shoes.

London-based Moses Adesanya created a Bauhaus-inspired print featuring interlocking geometric shapes shaved into the hair of two men, while Jasmin Sehra’s drew on the pastel colour palette and playful attitude of Ettore Sottsass’ Memphis movement.

Koby Martin’s impressionism-themed artwork features an atmospheric, eerie scene complete with doves and a haloed boy, whereas the Air Max 270 React created by Denzel Kessie features coral heals and toes and baby blue laces, inspired by his playful ode to mid-century modern.

Both Kinglsey Nebechi and Ham the Illustrator opted for illustrations more akin to their normal style, the former creating a two-colour landscape reinterpreting the American Modern movement’s interwar exuberance, and Ham depicting a crew of trippy characters in honour of psychedelia.

One of the artists behind the range is Erin Aniker, illustrator and co-curator of the We Are Here exhibitions. Her monochrome illustration for the React 270s makes your eyes pop, borrowing techniques from op art masters Bridget Riley and Victor Vasarely, and visuals from her home town and upbringing. “A lot of my work explores community, growing up and living and working in East London,” she explains. "For Nike, I included some figures but tried to keep them quite abstract. I wanted to have a mix to hint at the diverse community, people and cultures which make up London. I also took inspiration from the sharp angles and forms of London’s skyline and Brutalist architecture.

“I’m also really influenced by Islamic patterns, growing up with dual Turkish and British heritage and surrounded by a lot of Islamic textiles and ceramics, so this has a big influence on the way I explore pattern and composition.”

Each of the art-inspired Air Max 270 React shoes can be snapped up from Nike. Alternatively, you could customise your own with Nike’s recently revamped personalisation service, By You.