1 + 1 = 3
Don’ let the monstrosity of the recent COMME des GARÇONS x Nike Shox fool you. When Nike and COMME des GARÇONS get together it often produces one of the potentially most interesting and creatively expressive shoes of the season. Rei Kawakubo famously once said that “collaborations have no meaning if 1+1 does not equal much more than 2” and in the case of this partnership that is often achieved in my opinion. Of course, there are some misfires and you could probably rank all shoes in tiers reminiscent of a “the good, the bad and the ugly” system. In this case, the categorization should rather be “the genius, the underwhelming and the <<Wait what? Who the hell would ever realistically wear these?>>”. While the latter mostly provokes head shakes of non-appreciation, I would argue that these crazy outbursts are coherent with the whole COMME des GARÇONS house and Rei Kawakubo’s design ethos. Pushing boundaries, challenging audiences with silhouettes whose proportions seem uncomfortable to an eye trained to contemporary fashion trends, as well as always creating something preferably unprecedented are methods deeply rooted in the CdG DNA. Besides, this often results in something refreshingly surprising, which sadly has become too rare in an age of brands rehashing colourways on different models, poorly executing collaboration concepts, and slapping dozens of logos on a shoe without consideration for silhouette or material.
The first collaborations between Nike and the CdG house date back about twenty years. Initially, it was Rei Kawakubo’s protegée (and genius designer in his own right) Junya Watanabe who worked with the sneaker manufacturer to produce special versions of the Zoom Haven or the Air Kukini for his runway shows. Since then multiple CdG brands had special Nike iterations in their collections. Lately, mainly the COMME des GARÇONS Homme Plus label produced interesting exclusives which went not unnoticed by sneaker media. After being debuted during the COMME des GARÇONS Homme Plus fashion shows many blogs and Instagram accounts try to get their hands on images of the sneakers. Mostly, that means you have to zoom into runway photos or hope to get some behind the scenes imagery through some fashion buyer’s Instagram to get a proper look at the shoe. This cyclical dynamic seems to repeat itself season after season. Naturally, there are some misses to be found in the portfolio - again, like those atrocious Shox - but there is also a lot of gold to be found. Here are some of my personal favorites:
Junya Watanabe COMME des GARÇONS x Nike Waffle Racer
(Vintage Project 2002)
A few years ago, Nike and COMME des GARÇONS released a collaborative all-black rendition of the iconic Waffle Racer sneaker through the COMME des GARÇONS BLACK label - simple yet effective. Over a decade before, in 2002, there was an all-white pair already and alongside that, Nike also made an array of more colorful options for a Junya Watanabe collection. I find those much more intriguing because they feel very close to the original pairs. In my opinion, the Waffle Racer is one of Nike’s most important silhouettes and belongs on the Beaverton Mount Rushmore next to classics like the Air Force 1, Air Max 1 or Air Jordan 1. Even though it is widely considered to be one of the biggest milestones in Swoosh history, they get re-released inexplicably rarely. Luckily, Nike seems to make an effort to bring back the silhouette alongside other vintage runners like the Outburst or the Daybreak. Maybe they should look into some of these colorways for potential retro-releases. Especially the fantastic yellow and green combo with the striking red swoosh.
COMME des GARÇONS BLACK x Nike Blazer Low (2013)
In contrast to the vibrant colorways of the Junya Waffle Racer, this is one of many shoes in only black and white colorways from this point on. After all, black is Rei Kawakubo’s favorite color and she is no stranger to working with white fabric either, although it is probably unrealistic to assume that she is deeply involved in the design process of the Nike collabs personally. I bought this Blazer Low on a 2015 trip to Tokyo in the CdG Aoyama store because at that time it was impossible to find them in Europe. Also, it was frankly the only thing available in the store I could afford and I really wanted a souvenir from that essential space of CdG history. The combination of hairy suede and the smooth leather heel patches and leather swooshes really give this shoe a luxurious feel. For my taste, the coated laces are a little too shiny and fairly annoying to lace, but that is more nitpicking than a real complaint. Basically, this Blazer Low is a premium, rather discreet take on a classic silhouette. Not too in your face but enough “if you know you know”.
COMME des GARÇONS Homme Plus x Nike Dunk (2017)
Yes, the whole see-through upper concept has been executed numerous times before. CLOT did it on their “Kiss of Death” Air Max 1 and Steve Powers aka ESPO did it on his Air Force 2 for example. Nonetheless, I really like it here on the Dunk silhouette because it simultaneously feels minimal and surprisingly unique. Also, feel free to show off your Tye Dye Socks in these. Still, I have to admit, there are a lot of arguments against this shoe. They are probably super uncomfortable to wear, consist of a lot of plastic, are the opposite of breathable, and will crease up after a handful of steps. From a technical or utilitarian point of view, they are fairly nonsensical. But hey - sometimes nonsense can be interesting, too.
COMME des GARÇONS SHIRT x Supreme x Nike Air Force 1 (2017)
Like presumably many people within the sneaker cosmos, I think my first introduction to the whole COMME des GARÇONS house was the first CdG SHIRT x Supreme collection in 2012. Since then their Spring/Summer 2017 collection has to be my personal favorite. I really like the eye pattern and still regret not being able to afford that excellent all-over print shirt when it released. They also put the print on a classic pair of clean white Air Force 1s which resulted in probably the best CdG x Supreme sneaker collaboration to date. I remember some images going around of pairs without the print and only the embossed branding on the shoe after the release. People tried to entertain the illusion that those production errors automatically elevated their shoes to valuable collectibles like a misprinted Mauritius stamp or something. Even though that wasn’t the case, regular pairs are almost prohibitively expensive on the secondary market now.
COMME des GARÇONS Homme Plus x Nike Air Mowabb (2018)
These are maybe the strongest effort out of the whole bunch and I’m super happy to own this pair. Although “deconstruction” approaches are arguably highly overused in the current sneaker-landscape, these are just amazing. Of course, they lead the All Conditions Gear idea ad absurdum because believe me, these are not made for all conditions - at least if you want to keep them somewhat clean. However, in my opinion, this is exactly what a COMME des GARÇONS x Nike project should look like. A high-end and experimental take on an important but not omnipresent (almost niche) silhouette - way deep in the left-field but still with strong roots in the Nike archive. At first glance they might seem quite minimal or “simple” but the more you observe them the more you appreciate the complicated construction and thoughtful details. The subtle ACG to CDG logo flip is very nice, the all-white Air Mowabb outsole graphic looks fantastic, and it is difficult to explain, but I can’t stop looking at the asymmetrical perforation pattern on the toebox and side panels.
COMME des GARÇONS Homme Plus x Nike Air Max 95 (2020)
Even though it did not release yet, this trio of Air Max 95 looks very promising. They seem to follow an “unfinished” formula similar to the Air Mowabbs and look like a worthy spiritual successor. Considering that COMME des GARÇONS is a Japanese fashion house and the monumental status of the Air Max 95 within Japanese sneaker community the silhouette seems to be an obvious choice for this constellation. Surprisingly, this has not been capitalized on before. I’m very curious to see how these will be received once they release.
Sources:
https://thearchiviststore.com/products/nike-junya-watanabe-man-waffle-racer-2002-us10
https://www.highsnobiety.com/2017/05/17/nike-comme-des-garcons-history/
https://item.rakuten.co.jp/instinct/1484785/
https://sneakernews.com/2017/07/18/comme-des-garcons-nike-waffle-racer-black/
https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/sneakers/first-look-comme-des-garcons-x-supreme-x-nike-air-force-1/
https://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/35770/1/comme-des-garcons-met-ball-rei-kawakubo-dover-street-market
Thumbnail image: CGD ACG
Source: Driss Dendoune; Instagram @driss745
