Thursday, August 13, 2009

~ The Customizer of the week for Nike is: ~


MIKIE (SEATTLE SNEAKER CUSTOMIZER)


The age old saying, ‘it’s not what you know but who you knowhas certainly helped customizer Mikie from grunge city Seattle. Growing up with Supersonic’s b-baller Luke Ridnour and getting his designs worn by the entire NBA team would seem like the coup of coups. But leave it to hard working Mikie to create a name for himself on his own, rather than riding on any coat-tails along the way. Just don’t tell him that art on sneakers is a dying trend – Mikie is here to stay and pave the way for an airbrushed future! Few question has been ask to him and here' the responses...


~> Tell us about Mikie and how it all started?
Oddly enough the idea for my first shoe design came while I was at church. It seemed like a natural fit to call them Mikie's seeing that is what everyone calls me and I did them on a pair of Nikes, so it kind of rhymes. But it all started with one design that I did for myself and then
Luke Ridnour wore them to a game and since then I have had a business doing them. Now I am getting great opportunities to work with some of creative field’s finest and collaborating on projects.

~> Where did the concept with the air brushing and paint splattering come in to effect?
Well I draw a lot of my inspiration from the streets and graffiti is a huge part of the street culture. But I didn’t want to be another customiser doing graffiti on shoes. I wanted to create something you could wear everyday or on a special occasion. So I took elements that I liked and went to work.

~> What is it about this style that is so popular in the States?
I think it bookmarks a big part of the street culture movement. Street art was and still is one of the driving forces behind it all. It provided a big source of inspiration for many designers back in the day and that eventually filters down to the shelves, seeing most of those guys are now running the companies and influencing fashion today.

~> Where would you ultimately like Mikie to be in the next couple of years? Do you think customizing sneakers will still be so popular?
I would like to be an established artist and collaborating on big projects within sneakers or other urban influenced design. Customising is now a part of the history of the sneaker community, so I don’t think we will see it go too far before someone reinvents it or puts a new twist on it.


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