Debuted during the CDG Paris SP17 collection runway show, the Nike VaporMax for COMME des GARÇONS combines designer Rei Kawakubo’s idiosyncratic modernism with Nike’s pinnacle expression of Air.

Whereas previous Air units had to be insulated by a secondary rubber layer for protection, new technologies allow the incorporation of the Air and exterior layer into one holistic, standalone Nike VaporMax Air unit. The new innovation thus enables designers to create a powerful visual appearance of walking on air. In this expression, the Flyknit upper was modified to reflect Kawakubo's vision of a slip-on version of the Vapormax.