Some kids collected sneakers. I drew them, over and over.

In sixth grade, I couldn’t stop sketching sneakers in the margins of my notebooks. The one that obsessed me most was the Nike Air More Uptempo — especially the black-and-white colorway with the bold “AIR” lettering running across the side. To me, it wasn’t just a shoe. It was a piece of design, attitude, and culture all wrapped into one.

Sneakers as My First Design Classroom

That early obsession with sneaker culture was more than fandom. It was my first entry point into design — a way to understand how style, identity, and culture intersect. Long before I had professional tools, sneakers were teaching me about proportion, branding, and the power of bold graphics.

Senior Year of Art School: Repurposing Sneakers

Fast forward to my senior year of art school, and sneakers were still a central theme in my work. For my studio project, I repurposed sneakers — cutting them apart, reworking them, and transforming them into something new. That project was a turning point. It didn’t just earn me a grade — it opened real doors.

That work landed me an internship and eventually a design job at PUMA, where I had my first professional experience designing for a global brand. Sneaker culture had officially carried me from the classroom into the industry.

Sneakers as a Thread in My Art Today

Today, sneakers continue to influence my work as an artist and muralist. They shape the way I think about design and storytelling, and they often appear across my illustrations, murals, and collaborations.

That’s why I’ve decided to revisit the Nike Air More Uptempo — the very first sneaker I ever drew — and reimagine it in my new signature style. It’s more than just a drawing. It’s a way to honor where I started while showing how far this journey has come.

Full Circle

Sometimes looking back isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about recognizing the roots of everything you’ve built.

For me, sneakers — and the Uptempo in particular — will always be part of that story.