Nike Air Max 90

Air Max 90 Metallic Copper (black / dark russet / metallic copper)

Air Max 90 (white / khaki / cyber / dk smoke grey)

Air Max 90 (white / wolf grey / pink foam / armory navy)

The iconic silhouette is already celebrating its 30th anniversary! - The Air Max 90 is still a central part of sneaker culture today and one of the most important designs from Nike. The 90 Air Max stepped into the footsteps of the Air Max 1 and became the second flagship sneaker from Nike Sportswear. Responsible for this was none other than Tinker Hatfield, who took it upon himself to enlarge the visible Air unit and place his trademark: the cut-off Nike »Swoosh«.

Tinker Hatfield and the story of the Air Max 90

Thought of as a performance runner, the AM90 was created with a new midsole made of two separate pieces that allowed for an even larger Air unit. Even in the forefoot area, an Air Bubble was integrated, which, however, could not yet be made visible in the manufacturing process at that time - Not until the Air Max 95.

As the third member of the Air Max series, Hatfield wanted to follow up the success of the Air Max 1. With Nike becoming the go-to brand both on the streets and in running technology at the time, Hatfield tried his hand at a gaudier design. The result hit like a bomb. The bold details at the time were the large Air window and the panel design of the uppers. But the most memorable element became the OG colorway »Infrared« (originally »Hyvent Orange«)! Bright red resp. orange details in combination with bright, contrasting colors. Sneakerheads celebrate this colorway to this day and can't get enough of it!

The design of the Air Max 90 and the countless variations

The Air Max 90 impresses with an upper in panel design made of airy duromesh, synthetic leather and synthetic suede. The clean lines are complemented by additional Lace panels and a large Nike Air logo can be found on the heel. In addition, the Air window is visually highlighted by a break in the sole, making it look even bigger. In addition to the legendary design from 1990, Nike has also provided us with additional variations of the AM90. In the process, the upper was gladly reworked, as in the Air Max 90 Hyperfuse, which looks a bit slimmer and more elegant thanks to tape seams. A similar concept was followed by the Air Max 90 Ultra 2.0 Flyknit, which hugs the foot with a tight fit and is much lighter and more breathable due to the Flyknit. The Swoosh brand also offers a rugged and weatherproof design - suitable for fall and winter, the AM90 Surplus from Nike will get you through the cold seasons with its rugged Cordura upper and reinforced sole tread.

The best releases of the last 30 years

With such a legendary sneaker, there is certainly no shortage of special releases and collaborations. After the shoe made its comeback in 2001, the wait was over. In addition to Escapes, Pyhtons, Laser Blues and the MX Orange, Nike also worked with artists and designers on other memorable colorways and collaborations. In 2004, Dave's Quality Meats designed one of the most bizarre Air Max 90: an AM90 inspired by bacon! Both light and dark shades of brown, red, and some pink make the AM90 look like delicious breakfast bacon.

Off-White designer Virgil Abloh had a different idea in mind. As part of »The Ten« collection, he reconstructed the sneaker and revealed the construction behind the AM90's development.

Just in time for »Pride Month« June, Nike stood up for the LGBTQ community in 2019 with a colorful »BETRUE«-Kollektion. Of course, the classic Air Max 90 could not be missing. The upper of the Betrue sneaker reflects various colors of the rainbow flag. Another eye-catcher is the eye-catching Swoosh, which spreads out into several colorful mini swooshes.

Three icons for the release of the Nike Air Max III »Infrared«

To mark the 30th anniversary of the iconic silhouette, the highlight that sneaker fans worldwide have been waiting for all year finally arrived in late 2020: The Nike Air Max 90 returned as the Air Max III one-to-one version true to the 1990 original! For the big anniversary, Nike was inspired not only in the colorway, but also in the naming of the origins, because the Air Max 90 was known prior to 2006 only as Air Max III. We at 43einhalb have brought up three icons to celebrate the release: The »Infrared« AM90, Germany's most successful rap legend Kool Savas and a »Baby Benz« from the 90s, which, by the way, one of our followers got to win.