Parra x Nike 2018: Back at it
If you like sneakers or footwear as a whole, you sure will be happy about this. Among many out-of-this-world collaborations that were released during the so-called Golden Era, and after almost a 10-year break, Parra joins forces with Oregon’s finest to launch another banger.
Parra X Nike: a short story
The first collaboration dates back to 2005 when the “Albert Heijn” was set to release. The pair displayed bright orange and blue colors on the upper, just like the Dutch supermarket chain.
That same supermarket changed its colors just before the release, hence, the Air Max 1 “Amsterdam” was instead, showing a burgundy-ish upper. It is rumored that only 24 pairs of the Albert Heijn were given out to Friends and Family.
Those two put together achieve crazy amounts of money in resell platforms, especially if they are in deadstock condition.
(Image Credits: SneakersBR)
Its success was immense, hence, by 2010, another great pair was released. Considered by many the Grail of Grails, the Air Max 1 “Cherrywood” was released in collaboration with Parra and Patta, both Amsterdam giants.
The so-called “regular” version (as seen in the featured image) is a rare find these days and even more in deadstock condition. You can find at least one pair for sale right here.
Put those three together, yet again, and you may actually afford a (very) small second-hand car. Nevertheless, no one seems to mention the Air Maxim 1 by Parra, a Quickstrike release in 2009, for obvious reasons.
A lot has been done to this silhouette in particular, such as including Flywire technology. But even if they are considered collectible for many, they do not come close to all the other pairs mentioned above.
Another pair that we do not get to see that often is the Air Max 95, also designed by the man himself.
(Image Credits: SweetSoles)
Parra x Nike: Bringing back a legendary shoe
Not that Nike needs much help on imprinting their name within the sneaker community, and in our humble opinion, Piet Parra also does not need it, however, all the above collaborations only helped them grow and build their reputation among all sneaker aficionados across the globe.
As mentioned previously, 2017 was a great year for Nike. We believe we all agree on that. Even though 2018 is just shaping to be the same, if not better, and even if we were already expecting something like this for a while, py_rates only confirmed what we already knew.
According to the leaker’s page, two new pairs shall release in mid-2018. As it seems, an Air Max 1 and an Air Zoom Spiridon will drop at a time not very far away.
Especially the Air Zoom Spiridon has grown in popularity since 2016. After all, the Air Max 1 is just timeless. Furthermore, both pairs should display a blue/white/red colorway.
Everything that has his signature quickly becomes a sneakerhead’s desirable. There are no images around the web as we speak, but it sure should not be long ’till it happens.
Parra’s Untold History
Pieter Janssen AKA Piet Parra is considered by many an “accidental” artist. Everything happens for a reason, but the urban art superstar staggered upon his talent not that long ago.
It all started by designing party flyers and by now, he has worked with major brands such as Nike, Vans, and Converse. He also launched his own apparel label in 2002, Rockwell, now named by Parra.
With a skateboarding background and transitioning from street art to a more “legitimate” artist with solo exhibits, Parra has developed his own style from very early stages. From the point where he did a FootLocker campaign, everything else came together on its own.
His dad was a painter, so there’s something to relate to. Parra and Patta have always been rather close. Gee, the founder of Patta gave him his nickname at first.
If you did not know, Gee was, in short, connected to Amsterdam’s nightlife. Hence, Parra used to call him multiple times to make sure he was on the guest list for whatever event. Someday, Gee told him “stop acting Parra, Piet!”, with parra being short for paranoid.
His link with Nike may be considered one great achievement, but what really put him on the map was a collaboration with Etnies. Apart from footwear, Piet Parra has also been doing music beats for some time as well as designing some book covers and magazine covers.
(Piet Parra’s Magazine Covers via The Hundreds Blog)