The object
Tinker Hatfield designed the Nike Air Max 1, making pressurised Air cushioning visibly legible through the midsole window. Nike traces the idea to Hatfield’s architectural research and continues to document the shoe as the start of its enduring Air Max lineage; a current organisational profile identifies his Nike design role.
01
What Tinker did
designed the Nike Air Max 1, exposing its Air cushioning unit as a visible functional and visual element
02
Why it matters
The Air Max 1 turned hidden cushioning into a defining consumer-product visual language and inaugurated Nike’s long-running Air Max family.
03
Living-status check
A 2026 current Nike organisational profile identifies Hatfield as Vice President for Design and Special Projects.