The goal of this project was to create a unique landing page to tell the story of the Air Jordan 1. The page must keep inline with Nike and Jordan Brand's design philosophy while display the shoe in a unique way
Role: Art Direction, Graphic Design, Web Design, UX Design
Nike and Jordan Brand are the biggest shoe company on the planet with a rich history and many iconic shoe silhouettes. One of their biggest and most iconic models is the Air Jordan 1. Introduced in 1985, the shoe debuted during Michael Jordan's 2nd year in the NBA in 2 colourways - A Black and Red version, known as the Banned version, and a Red, Black and White version. The black and red colorway violated the league's uniform policy, earning a stern letter from league officials and generating a $5,000 fine each time the player wore the shoes on court. It is with this brazen charisma that the Air Jordan lineage was born. The Air Jordan 1 has such a rich history and has made a major impact in pop culture, that it's important to highlight this in a unique and iconic way.
Create a unique landing page to tell the story of the Air Jordan 1. The page must keep inline with Nike and Jordan Brand's design philosophy while display the shoe in a unique way. Since the Air Jordan 1 is one of the most iconic shoes ever produced, and has such a rich history, it was important to display the history of the shoe in a way that was appealing. Another challenge was to display the shoe in a way to break down the construction of the iconic silhouette, and all of the elements in the shoe. Lastly I was tasked to display the history of the shoe by displaying the origins of the shoes that came before it, and the colourways Michael wore during the time he played wearing the Air Jordan 1's.
I started this project by looking at the origin story of the Air Jordan 1. Already being a fan of the model and Jordan Brand, I had an idea of where it began and what the claim to fame was but it was important to know the finer details of the shoe and why it was so important to not only sneaker culture but the impact on the NBA. I also wanted to know the technology inside the shoe and what made it work, and how it was constructed. The reason being is that Nike and Jordan Brand pride themselves on the tech inside their products, and I felt it was important to show that this has been the case for decades. Lastly with this shoe, there are a lot of iconic colourways and each one of them has a story behind them. I felt it was important to display those other colourways as well to add to the overall story behind the shoe.
I started the design process by having the basic colour elements of the shoe that was banned from the NBA - Black, White, and Red. I wanted the page to utilize these colours as it was what catapulted the shoe's reputation and lineage to what it is today. I wanted the main header of the page to not only display the shoes in a stylish way, but keep the colour blocking of black and red as those are the shoes that were banned from the NBA. Since those shoes were banned, they were iconic due to the notoriety of the shoes and the fact that Nike paid the fines every time Michael Jordan played in the shoes, only increasing the stature of the shoe and Jordan himself. I accompanied the shoe with a brief history of why the shoes were popular and how it sparked an entire line of iconic shoes that not only changed the ruling of the NBA but pop culture in general.
For the second part of the page, I wanted to include the product information behind the shoes, including the designer, when it was released, the price, as well as the shoe that Michael wore before - The Nike Air Ship. I added iconic images along with this section of Michael wearing the shoes and promoting them to further illustrate the appeal of the shoes. For the third part, I wanted to show a breakdown of the shoe and the construction of it. I think it's important for a consumer to know what goes into making the shoe and all aspects of it since it is an iconic silhouette and it did take risks when it was first released. The last part was the timeline of the shoe. Since Michael did wear 2 different shoe models prior to the Air Jordan 1, I felt it was important to include them as they are apart of the history of Jordan Brand and were a precursor to the Air Jordan 1. For the header, I added links to the other Air Jordan models as this was to be a series of pages to break down all of the Air Jordan models that were released by Nike and Jordan Brand.
Overall this project was a success. By creating a landing page for the iconic shoe that keeps in line with Nike and Jordan Brand's design philosophy and look, this page effectively displays the history of the Jordan 1 while keeping true to the iconic look that inspired a brand. By showcasing the shoe in an editorial way with the history of why it's so iconic beside it as the main section of the site, it gives consumers a look into the shoe's history that they may not have known about, while giving those who do you the history, a more refined experience.
