The Nike Air Max 90 “Infrared” Can Do No Wrong

Is there any love?

When it comes to the sneaker market, maybe not, or at least not for all.

Think about it: “Banned” 1s hit sale racks in 2009, no one knows how “Turtle Dove” 350s will age, and most will admit that “Concord” 11s are actually hard to wear.

The “Infrared” Nike Air Max 90 though? Truly a love supreme. Unaffected by fashion trends, immune to hype, and time tested, the revolutionary running shoe in its beloved birth tones has seen no fatigue or fall off in its three-decade dash.

Since arriving in 1990, the Nike Air Max 90, originally titled the Air Max III, has interacted with every aspect of sneaker culture and every type of wearer. Following in the footsteps of the Nike Air Max 1 and Nike Air Max Light, the OG Air Max 90 offered a tougher take on the revolutionary ‘87 model and its slighter sequel by upping the ante on all of its performance perks.

Sporting a larger Air unit than that of the Air Max 1 and a build that was both blockier yet fluid, the shoe was instantly sporty while also luxurious. The use of leather, mesh, and suede all added to the maximal aesthetic that spoke to more than just avid runners. 

Its “Infrared” arrival – then denoted as “Hyvent Orange” – proved that everything would be bigger and bolder as the AM90 illuminated the white/grey/red/black blocking that led its predecessors with some extra heat. With Tinker Hatfield at the helm, the Air Max 90 released perhaps at the peak of his creative powers and early pop culture ascent.

Coming off creating cross-training, making Air visible, and designing signature shoes for Michael Jordan, Marty McFly, and Bruce Wayne, the late ‘80s and early ‘90s saw Tinker Hatfield very much in his bag.  

Headed into the Air Max 90, Hatfield had an acute sense of how to appeal to a mass audience after the first global launch of an Air Jordan with the IV and the release of Back to the Future II both taking place in 1989. 

The momentum carried over to the Air Max 90 which very much hit the ground running as it was designed to look as though it was in motion. 

From the start, the Air Max 90 was instantly popular in America and in Europe with the “Infrared” edition leading it all. As Britainâ€s Seven Store would point out, the shape of the shoe played well to the baggy denim hip-hop movement that started in the early ‘90s and lasted a good 15 years in the States and made waves across the pond. 

At the start and in every year after, it wasnâ€t just rappers and runners who relished the “Infrared” Air Max 90. From the US to the UK, members of the acid house and hardcore cultures were adopting the Air Max 90 on foot, on stage and on the go.

In only a matter of time, the Air Max 90 was seemingly everywhere.

And then it was gone.

While Hatfieldâ€s famous Air Max 1 would get the re-release treatment early and often through the 1990s, the Air Max III would not return nor take on the Air Max 90 moniker until 2000. 

Retro’d at a time when basketball footwear was too forward-thinking and too in the transition to gain the same casual fanfare it had in the ‘80s and ‘90s, retro running was ready to stake a claim in everyday wear. Right on time, the Air Max 90 was prime to fill the lifestyle sneaker gap in the early ‘00s while also feeding a growing appetite for nostalgia.

Leather launches and basic blocking was enough to appease anyone with a palette for classics upon the Air Max 90â€s retro arrival in 2000. However, it wasnâ€t until 2002 and 2003 that fans were able to flock to the Real McCoy with the first returns of the “Infrared” edition — both Eastern hemisphere exclusives. 

Proving a hit in Australia, Europe, and Asia, these early retro releases were forecasting the future as the “Infrared” 90 would constantly cater to core collectors while offering mass appeal. 

Soon the States would be in on the “Infrared” action. Serving as perhaps the paramount of Air Max 90 intrigue and a case study against the laws of hype was the History of Air Pack launch in 2005. 

Released at malls across America in the likes of Finish Line and Galyanâ€s while still sought after by those that fancied Footpatrol or Nort, the “Infrared” 90s were widely available yet still highly respected. The hyper hue would still resonate in an American market that was yet to fully embrace streetwear. Across the pond, the retro runner still connected with a core European base that always placed the model on a pedestal.

Over the course of the 2000s and 2010s, fashion and footwear would change often but love for the Air Max 90 in “Infrared” would remain the same. For the 15 years following the History of Air Pack release, the “Infrared” 90 would return in everything from aged OG homages to futuristic takes tied to techs like Free, Flyknit, Hyperfuse, Lunar Foam, 360 Air Max, and Engineered Mesh. 

The experimentation on the “Infrared” Air Max 90 over the 2010s was par for the course at Nike Sportswear. However, the reception was not.

While a “Banned” Air Jordan 1 Alpha was met with next to no fanfare and even a Black/White Converse Chuck Taylor II came and went, every “Infrared” Air Max 90 evolution was at least interesting and still appears of aesthetic value.

To this day, evolution has taken well to the Air Max 90, and adaptation has taken well to its tones.

Thatâ€s because the Air Max 90 “Infrared” doesnâ€t belong to anyone, instead, it belongs to everyone. Never once has one model or one colorway catered to numerous niches while still holding global mass appeal.

Time and time again, the “Infrared” rendition of the Air Max 90 has resonated with sneaker obsessives and casual collectors alike. Whether bought at a boutique in Brooklyn or a mall in Minnesota, the timeless classic feels the same and history suggests it always will.

Returning for its ninth time in true to form fashion in 2020, the Air Max 90 “Infrared” may be the only retro sneaker that’s never truly gotten tired. Amassing fans in both hemispheres and surviving a slew of shifts in fashion, it is the one singular sneaker that’s never been unloved and constantly proves unphased – something even the Air Jordan 1, adidas Yeezy Boost 350, or Air Jordan 11 can’t claim.

Times have changed, the Air Max 90 “Infrared” has not. The one shoe that Tinker Hatfield wanted to appear as though it was in motion has instead proved the cultureâ€s only constant. 

Whatâ€s not to love about that?

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Header: 2020 Nike Air Max 90 “Infrared” via Up There / Edit by Daniel Moran
Original Nike Air Max 90 ad via Air Max Tings
OG Nike Air Max 90 “Infrared” via Nike, Inc.
UK Grime legends Wiley & Dizzie Rascal in the Nike Air Max 90 “Infrared” via Air Max Tings
Various Nike Air Max 90 “Infrared” retro releases via Sneakers Mag
Nike Air Max 90 Flyknit “Infrared” via Nike, Inc.
Photo via Sneakers Mag