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One could easily argue that over the course of both 2017 and 2018, Virgil Abloh was responsible for the most coveted sneakers on the market.
While the founder of Off-White released footwear under the brand he birthed in both years and also took over men’s creative duties at Louis Vuitton this past year, it wasn’t so much his high-end designs that had kids camping out across the country — or rather world — but instead his deconstructed takes on favorites from Nike and their brand brethren in Jordan and Converse.
Originally dubbed “The 10,” Abloh’s collaborative releases under the Nike umbrella took home shoe of the year honors in 2017 with his reimagined rendition of the untouchable Air Jordan 1 “Chicago.” Just the same, his revamps on the Converse Chuck Taylor and Presto are set to pop-up on our yet to be released best of 2018 list.
Though “The 10” was the biggest moment for Nike in sneaker culture for 2017, some feel the magic was stretched in 2018 as the collaboration that was once “The 10” has now stretched to roughly three times that original amount.
Following a recent post by Abloh on his IG story, it appears the recent releases from his and Nike’s heralded collection could be the last.
Spotted by Highsnobiety, Abloh alludes to the end of an era when referencing the recent releases as members of “the last ever 10.”
While this could mark the conclusion of said collection, it’s certainly not the end of Virgil’s footprint on sneaker culture and likely not the end of his work with Nike.
Over the last two years, Abloh has been collaborating with Nike concurrent to “The 10,” releasing everything from soccer kits to clothes custom made for Serena Williams. If his recent wears are on any indication of his brand loyalty or his next steps, then one would assume he will keep working with Nike and maybe even riff off the Dunks that have been a mainstay in his rotation as well as that of other notable Swoosh supporters.
Keep it locked to Nice Kicks for updates on Abloh’s work in 2019 which is already said to include a Louis Vuitton collection inspired by Michael Jackson.
