Nike's Air Works program just got to Los Angeles, and the city's entry is a slipper. LA designer Masyn is the latest member of Air Works' first class to reveal his design: a 3D-printed Air Max mule built with Nike mentors and the 3D-printing outfit Zellerfeld, per Nike's newsroom.
The pair is black all over, with a slip-on upper and a small Swoosh on the lateral side. A pink Max Air unit sits in the heel, and "Air Works" branding and stars are embossed on the outsole. According to Complex, Nike says the stars running through the design are a nod to the billboards in his hometown. "I'd be lost without the stars in my life, and this opportunity is a chance to show them how much they mean to me," Masyn says in the press release.
Some background if you haven't been following along. Nike invited eight young designers from eight cities to its Beaverton campus last spring to dig through 40 years of Air history and make new Air Max shapes with 3D printing. The reveals roll out about once a month: Motoi Hatsuki (Tokyo) in July, Tasnim (London) in August, Marc Su (Beijing) in September and now Masyn (Los Angeles) for October. Jose Wong (Shanghai) is up in December, then Yams (Paris) in January 2027, Omi (New York City) in February and Diya Joukani (Mumbai) in March, which lines up nicely with Air Max Day.
Don't get your card out yet. Nike calls each Air Works shoe a limited-run, friends and family silhouette, and Complex reports Masyn's friends and family event is happening this week at Nova Studios in LA. There's no public release, price or date. For now this is a look at where Air Max could go, not something you can cart.
Our take: An Air Max mule made by a printer sounds like a dare, but it works. The silhouette is clean, the pink bubble is the only color on it and it's exactly the shoe you'd want for a coffee run in Silver Lake. Out of four reveals so far, this is the one most likely to make people email Nike asking for a general release. Somebody start that email.
Shop current Air Max and more at ONENESS / Nike. The Air Works mule isn't stocked at ONENESS.
Photos: official Nike Air Works assets via Nike's newsroom.
