Collaborators You Need to Know: Virgil Abloh

Few people have done more to advance sneaker culture in the last decade than the late Virgil Abloh. Under his Off-White clothing brand, Abloh took classics like the Air Jordan 1 and Nike Air Force 1 and turned them into modern works of art with design features never before seen on a sneaker: frayed edges, rearranged branding components, and an unmistakable zip-tie hang tag that was a nod to Abloh’s roots in industrial design. The designer’s distinct vision helped spark the “DIY” movement, which in turn gave other collaborators more creative freedom, resulting in more unique collaborations in the late 2010s than at almost any time in the history of sneaker culture.

Abloh’s collaborations were some of the most progressively designed sneakers in history. And if you look through our inventory, you’ll quickly realize they’re still some of the most valuable, too. That special combination of cutting edge design and otherworldly demand makes Abloh’s collaborations a perfect launching point for our new Collaborators You Need to Know series for the Stadium Supply blog. Below are just a few highlights of the Off-White x Nike collection.

Off-White x Air Jordan 1 High OG “The 10 – Chicago”

The definitive Virgil Abloh collaboration, and maybe the definitive collaboration in the history of sneakers, is the Off-White x Air Jordan 1 High OG “Chicago” from “The 10” collection. The colorway takes the Jordan 1’s iconic and original white, red, and black design and gives it both a retro and modern look with a stitched-on Swoosh, raw edge collar, unstitched forefoot overlay, and stamped “AIR” branding on the midsole. Somehow, these design elements make the shoe look like it could have been released in 1985 as much as it could have been in 2017, when it actually debuted—or even in 2023, too.

Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 Low “White/Blue”

In 2018, Louis Vuitton named Abloh the Creative Director of its menswear line. The move to make him the first person of African descent to lead the brand’s men’s division was monumental and universally lauded. During his tenure, Abloh helped bring a streetwear edge to Louis Vuitton’s seasonal collections, runway shows, and collaborations. There may be no better example of what we’re talking about than Louis Vuitton’s Nike Air Force 1 Low collaboration from 2022. The project, which featured several AF1 colorways, gives the vintage basketball shoe a throwback look with its two-tone color block inspired by the original Nike Dunk design while staying true to Louis Vuitton’s premium aesthetic.

Off-White x Nike Dunk Low “Lot 01”

Along with championing the “do-it-yourself” aesthetic that became so prevalent in sneakers in the mid-to-late 2010s, Abloh also made it possible for brands to release multiple colorways in a single collaboration. (See Sacai and Travis Scott’s work with Nike as proof.) In 2021, Abloh and Nike dropped not one, not two, not even three, but 50 unique Dunk colorways as part of a “Lot” series. In typical Off-White fashion, each Dunk blended a nostalgic styling with new-age design theories for a refreshingly modern look.

Off-White x Nike Air Force 1 Low “Brooklyn”

Just after debuting “The 10” in 2017, Abloh and Nike ran back their collaboration in early 2018 when they released a colorway of the Air Force 1 Low exclusively at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art. The mostly black colorway was extremely desirable coming on the heels of “The 10,” but also extremely hard to come by. Fans who missed out on the shoe were later given additional chances at owning an Air Force 1 in a similar color block when the blue Off-White x Nike Air Force 1 Low “MCA” dropped in 2019, followed by a yellow version released to synchronize with the opening of Abloh’s “Figures of Speech” exhibit at Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art in Summer 2021. The “Brooklyn” in green, released to celebrate the opening of an Abloh exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum in 2022, is the final version of this AF1 style to date.

Off-White x Women’s Air Jordan 4 “Sail”

Originally created as a sample shoe for Abloh’s “Figures of “Speech” exhibit in Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art in 2019, the Women’s Air Jordan 4 “Sail” received an official retail release in July 2020. The colorway was a bit of a departure from Abloh’s signature “deconstructed” look as it retains the Jordan 4’s standard design. But it was no less desirable. The shoe still fetches over $2k on the resale market years after its release.