Tinker Hatfield created the visible-air-window design of the Nike Air Max 1, released in 1987.
Hatfield joined Nike as an architect and became a footwear designer. He drew inspiration from the Centre Pompidou in Paris, whose exposed structural and mechanical elements influenced the Air Max 1’s visible technology. The shoe made the air cushioning unit in the midsole visible through a window in the heel.
Nike had used Air cushioning in earlier shoes, but the Air Max 1 made the technology a central visual feature. The design initially worried some Nike executives because exposing the cushioning was considered risky, yet it became one of the company’s most recognizable silhouettes.
Hatfield later designed many important Nike models, including several Air Jordan shoes. A common mix-up is confusing him with Peter Moore, who designed the original Air Jordan 1, or Bill Bowerman, who co-founded Nike and developed earlier footwear innovations.