Nike Air Max is one of Nike's most enduring sub-lines, launched on March 26, 1987 with the Air Max 1 — designed by Tinker Hatfield. The innovation was conceptual as much as technical: Hatfield's inspiration for exposing the previously-hidden Air cushioning through a visible window came from the Centre Pompidou in Paris, where he saw the building's structural systems exposed as architectural features. The idea of showing technology rather than hiding it became a defining Nike philosophy.
Foundational Air Max silhouettes
- Air Max 1 (1987, Tinker Hatfield) — the original, the first with visible Air
- Air Max Light (1989) — stripped-down successor
- Air Max 90 / Air Max III (1990, Tinker Hatfield) — larger Air bubble, Infrared colorway
- Air Max 180 (1991) — 180-degree visible Air
- Air Max 93 (1993) — first 270-degree visible Air unit
- Air Max 95 (1995, Sergio Lozano) — inspired by human anatomy; first to feature visible Air in the forefoot
- Air Max 97 (1997, Christian Tresser) — Tokyo bullet-train inspired full-length Air
- Air Max 98, Air Max Plus (TN, 1998, Sean McDowell) — cult-favorite silhouettes
- Air Max 360 (2006) — first all-Air midsole, no foam
- VaporMax (2017) — pressurized Air pods directly bonded to upper
- Air Max 270, 720, Dn, Dn8 — modern evolutions
Air Max Day
Nike has celebrated March 26 as Air Max Day since 2014, typically releasing major Air Max drops — collaborations, retros, and completely new silhouettes — around the date. Past Air Max Day releases include Atmos "Elephant" AM1, the Off-White Air Max 90, and Patta × Nike Air Max 1 "Waves" and "Monarch."
Key collaborations
Air Max has been the canvas for some of Nike's most important collaborations: Patta × Air Max 1 series (2009–present), Atmos "Elephant" Air Max 1 (2007) and "Safari" Air Max 1 (2002), CLOT "Kiss of Death" Air Max 1 and 90 (2006, 2023), Sean Wotherspoon Air Max 1/97 "Sean Wotherspoon" (2018), Off-White × Air Max 90 (2017, 2019), Travis Scott × Air Max 1 (2021), Supreme × Air Max 98/96, and Nigel Sylvester × Air Max 1.