Nike is a company that had experimented with its OG sneakers a number of times, however, the Swoosh also has a knack for innovation as well as attempting to revolutionize the sneaker world as we know it. One of the Swoosh’s inventions was the Crater foam that’s mostly in their sneakers’ outsoles and features materials made out of recycled items. Although it is expensive, Nike seems bent on bringing about the green revolution and it appears that concept artists have taken notice with art that takes a nod at the Nike Carter or Space Hippie sneakers. Presenting now, the Air Max 90 UNC Crater.
This concept is somewhat special. The UNC often called the University Blue colorway pays homage to Michael Jordan’s alma mater. Although this concept doesn’t entirely reflect that colorway it’s quite similar. Furthermore, the specks on the upper are reminiscent of 2020’s Nike Space Hippie lineup which saw the release of 3 new colorways that were constructed primarily with recycled materials. After this Nike also introduced crater foam and implemented that technology on other models such as the Air Force 1 and the Air Jordan 1. In June of 2022, Nike also released the Air Max 90 Terrascape which featured crater foam midsoles but the colorway was not as attractive as this UNC spinoff.
Coming to the design of this shoe, uppers are seemingly constructed with white and University Blue colors with a hint of navy hues. White leather appears on the toes that are speckled with dots, reminiscent of paint splatter. Mudguards are also white with black specks reminiscent of crater foam while the rear quarter feature sky-blue cutouts with dark blue embossed Air Max tags. The toe boxes are mesh with a UNC blue hue that matches the collars of the sneaker.
Lower eye stays are also white crisp leather while the plastic eye stay panels are blue. Throats are crisp white while matching laces blend right in. The tongues are white and feature dark blue tags with Nike branding. Meanwhile, dark blue sock liners differentiate themselves, leading down to matching dark blue interiors and possibly white inserts with matching blue branding. Rears also feature light blue heel pieces and white dark blue leather Swooshes cover the sides. Dark blue midsoles with exposed Air Units and UNC blue outsoles finish off the design. For similar content and more, stay tuned!