Designing a sneaker appears to be easy, but it’s not. It involves several processes and numerous people, especially if the new pair is from a top fashion or sports brand. In addition, design can take a lot of time as many things must be considered in the creative process.
Thomas Le has designed these Watercolor Sneakers. The industrial designer was the same guy who worked on the wireless earbuds with a spinning dial. He also presented the Di-Fuse Smartwatch—a minimalist watch that uses light and sound to convey information. For the sneakerheads, the designer also introduced the Adidas Air Jordans.
Designer: Thomas Le
Controlled organic forms and patterns inspired the Watercolor Sneakers. The designer mentioned this pair was an exercise on surface modeling, visualization, and CMF exploration. It’s only a concept, but we want the design to go into production and the sneaker market.
The pair is no Nike or Adidas, but the brand can consider the design. It doesn’t feature any shoelace as it’s a slip-on. The upper appears to be something similar to the Charles Birshaw Modular Mule. There is a separate tongue, but the shoe collars are like Nike’s Flyknit.
The shoe features a pull tab for easy removal. The tab’s design features several X’s sewn onto the rear. The midsole and the outsole appear to be integrated as one unit. We can expect it to be comfortable and soft as trainers should be.
The Watercolor Sneakers’ design is very contemporary with a bit of a futuristic aesthetic. Interestingly, the pair can still be minimalistic even with the colors because of the simple design. The watercolor design offers that cool and refreshing appeal ideal for summer. In some ways, the structural design of the shoe reminds us of the Feebes Sock Sneakers.
Thomas Le rendered the Watercolor Sneakers in different colors: Peach, Blue, Neon Green, and White. The white version is the simplest of all. Of course, it could also be just the prototype, but the white pair can be a bestseller since many sneakerheads are always looking for the next best white sneakers.
Thomas Le’s shoe designs show us that he is a great industrial designer. If only this design and his other works would go into production, we’ll have another famous designer to talk about. In particular, his Adidas Air Jordans were presented as a natural collaboration between Michael Jordan and Adidas. Of course, that’s never happening, maybe not in this lifetime, but no one’s stopping you from dreaming.