Two years ago, sneakerheads discovered that the Off-White x Nike Air Jordan 1 was supposed to include a visible airbag, and Virgil Abloh just shared images of the first existing sample pair he created. 

A blueprint for the legendary collaboration, the mock-up shoe has been drawn on, pulled apart, and worn in the images on Abloh’s Instagram. On the sole, there’s a sketch in place of the future airbag, while an exposed interior section boasts a taped-on swoosh. As the “exact pair that kicked off an epiphany,” the first-of-it’s-kind design holds an unprecedented sentimental value for the leading visionary. 

Abloh goes on to discuss how he used an Exacto knife to cut up the sneaker in unknown ways, a process which ultimately resulted in the beginning of “The Ten” collection. Below, take a look at Virgil Abloh’s first-ever Off-White x Nike Air Jordan 1 sample design.

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there was a time when getting Michael Jordan’s autograph was a major life goal… ⁣ ⁣ an exacto knife and this off the shelf pair of Jordan 1’s and The Ten came to fruition. this is the exact pair that kicked off an epiphany. ©2016

A post shared by @ virgilabloh on Apr 19, 2020 at 5:04pm PDT