Virgil Abloh. Nike. ICONS
About
Taschen delivers an intimate chronicle of one of footwear's most consequential creative partnerships. Within these pages lies the complete visual history of "The Ten" collection, a groundbreaking series that fundamentally altered how we perceive athletic shoes as cultural artifacts.
The publication grants access to Abloh's working methodology in remarkable detail. Handwritten annotations populate early concept drawings. Prototype photographs capture iterations that never reached production. Exchanges between collaborators preserve the spontaneous momentum that drove each design forward. Conversations with key figures illuminate the reasoning behind choices both subtle and dramatic.
What emerges is a portrait of design as dialogue. Abloh treated each silhouette as raw material for interrogation, applying his signature vocabulary of deconstruction, quotation marks, and exposed construction. The Air Jordan 1 becomes a canvas for transparency. The Blazer reveals its internal architecture. The Presto embraces the handmade quality of custom work.
Beyond documentation, the book itself embodies Abloh's aesthetic philosophy. Production values match the audacity of the subject matter, with paper stock, binding, and layout decisions that feel deliberately unconventional. It functions equally as reference material for designers, artifact for collectors, and statement piece for those who appreciate when physical objects carry conceptual weight. This volume stands as both record and continuation of a creative vision that continues to influence how fashion and athletics intersect.
