Last week saw Qubic, New Zealand's baddest sneaker joint hold an exclusive adidas Originals shindig to commemorate the launch of the sophomore ObyO collections. Not content with hitting Kiwis with a healthy dose of Japanese flavours courtesy of designer Kazuki, Qubic also asked five knowledgeable heads to come up with their own adidas sneaker design. With the unveiling of each shoe taking place on the night, we have to admit, everyone has done a superb job at capturing the essence of the brand! Check out what each designer has to say about their designs below, and make sure you get your vote on to determine which joint hits the spot best! We're biased as a lawn bowl at Mardi Gras, but we know which one we love to death!
These are not being prroduced by the way, they are just for exhibition purposes. If demand is crazy enough, there is a chance a very small run will be made so hop to it sneaker freakers!
ORIGINALS BY QUBIC - WOODY
/// ADIDAS ZX700
Editor, Sneaker Freaker Magazine (Australia)
VIDEO INTERVIEW
Going into this project, Woody maintained Sneaker Freaker's collaboration record by continuing on with yet another old running model, the ZX700. Some of Woody's favourite adidas creations have been silhouettes in their running range, so it was no surprise when we unveiled his design on the night. After seeing hundreds of shoes every month, Woody wanted to create something a little simple but not too plain, so in the end opted for a solid monotone pale blue upper to match one of his favourite Maharishi jackets, with a bright white contrasting midsole and lace combination to break up the combination. A bright yet solid combination of colours.
ORIGINALS BY QUBIC - KEVIN DOWNIE
/// ADIDAS FORUM
Business Owner, Dunedin
VIDEO INTERVIEW
Kevin Downie's creation is a mix of classic colourways, local support, and nostalgia from his childhood as a youth growing up in the UK. A member of the "casuals" football and fashion movement of the 80's, the Forum mid was the perfect opportunity for him to relive one of his many fond memories involving adidas. Having bought his first Forum mid over a decade over in New York, he managed to break necks all over his home town when he returned with them on his feet, as they hadn't been released in the UK at that time. As an independent business owner himself, Kevin is a staunch supporter of local business, so the colour scheme is dedicated to a local independently owned beer brand, "Epic", one of his favourite brews as a beer enthusiast.
ORIGINALS BY QUBIC - CHRIS LEWIS
Art Director, TBWAWHYBIN
/// ADIDAS ZX700
VIDEO INTERVIEW
The design scheme behind Chris Lewis' shoe originates from his 10 year background as a graphic designer. A tribute to the CMYK process colour model, Chris chose this theme due to the medium that most of his work appears in - in printed media - posters, advertisments, billboards, logos, flyers and the like. With CMYK such a backbone of the colour printing industry, Chris placed the four colours on a white/white ZX700, creating a wild looking yet very structured colour scheme. The shoe also features various materials, including mesh toe caps and side vents, along with suede accents on the lace holes and heel tab. The "|||" embroidered onto the side of the shoe also represents the three adidas stripes, with the original stripes camouflaged amongst the side panel.
ORIGINALS BY QUBIC - FRANK LIEW
/// ADIDAS GAZELLE
Founder, Qubic Store, quarters boutique
VIDEO INTERVIEW
Frank chose the Gazelle as his model of choice for the classic thin adidas tongue - a feature he feels is one of the most iconic and signature item of an adidas Originals sneaker. Frank took a very subtle approach to designing this shoe, as a reflection of his own personal tastes and his goal of creating a shoe that can be worn everyday, yet has an inherent ‘custom' look about it. Instead of using different colours to differentiate and segment the panels, various textures and materials were applied instead - a smooth nubuck for the sides and the stripes, whilst the toe cap, lace holes, and rear heel tab were constructed out of smooth leather, creating a continuous line and segmentation from the front to the back of the shoe. It is a subtle change in texture but very noticeable to the touch. The heel tab and trefoil were also blacked out, in another subtle piece of detailing on the shoe. The final "pop" is the fuschia coloured outsole - conveniently placed so that if the wearer is standing or sitting with their feet on the ground, it is completely concealed, but if they are walking, people around them will get a momentary accent/flash of colour to break up the monotonous grey/black upper.
ORIGINALS BY QUBIC #2 - SEAN AICKIN
/// ADIDAS ZX700
Photographer, Wellington
VIDEO INTERVIEW
Although the Superstar I was his favourite shoe, Sean decided to choose the ZX700 as his platform due to the amount of customisation available to the model in the program. This was in homage to his other passion - photography, and his favourite film of choice - 35mm black and white. With only grayscale colours (black, white, grey), Sean put together his submission with the addition of the "desert pattern" - a pattern that closely resembles an effect in film printing, where the developer heats the film up to a certain temperature to create a crackled effect. The underlying message - if you heat the film too much it burns, but if done exactly right and in balance, it creates the correct effect, much like the colours and patterns applied to his shoe. Not too much, and not too little.
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