The year was 1985 when the Nike Dunk was born. Thirty years later, we celebrate the iconic silhouette that was driven by performance innovation that naturally translated to street style.
Originally sketched by designer Peter Moore and called the College Color High, the Nike Dunk was an artistic mash-up of different shoes, a common design practice at Nike for ‘80s basketball shoes.
The Dunk’s outsole resembled the same traction design of the Air Jordan 1, which launched just months before. The Dunk’s upper took cues from the Air Jordan 1 and the Nike Terminator; interestingly, the three shoes were all developed by the same design minds. The Dunk drew its eventual name from the shoe last on which it was created―the same last used to make the Nike Legend, considered the best fitting basketball last at that time.
Go back in time and check out some of the original Nike Dunks from 1985, along with those classic printed ad campaigns that really introduced the ground-breaking silhouette.
Source: Nike, Inc.