While the Jumpman logo is recognized as a universal symbol of swagger, you may be less familiar with Tinker Hatfield. He didn’t design every kick in the Air Jordan line. But the fact that his contributions stand out as icons in a series considered the pinnacle of sneaker design demands respect. After earning his stripes as a Bill Bowerman understudy, the now 55-year-old Hatfield went on to line his resume with designs like the groundbreaking Air Max 1 and his highlight reel of kicks for His Airness. As a trained architect, Hatfield has a different approach to sneaker design. He has translated museums (Air Max 1), fighter jets (Jordan V) and even lawn mowers (Jordan XI) into some of the best sneakers to ever pound the pavement and the hardwood. The never-not-working Tinker took some time out between traveling the country looking for new sketch ideas to talk to us about early corporate controversy, what working with MJ was like, and his take on Bape.

Complex: The Air Max 1 was inspired by the Pompidou Center in Paris. Take me through how the inspiration translates to the final product. 
Tinker Hatfield: Well, there was a time when we were—and when I say we, I mean Nike—we were developing this air-cushioning technology. And you could say air, you could have people run around in shoes, but it was something that was difficult to understand or difficult to explain. The technical people weren’t feeling it. I had just come back from a trip where I was in Paris, and I saw this radical piece of architecture where essentially the building was turned inside out. You could see the guts of the building, and you could see into it. It essentially started the architectural trends toward being more expressive. I came back from that trip and I was immersed in working on some new products for Nike, essentially the entire Air pack. As I was working on the running shoe, which was going to have a bigger airbag, and I thought, this bag is getting so big, it’s getting closer and closer to the edge of the midsole on both sides. I said, why don’t we just cut a big hole in the midsole, and let the bag kind of be exposed. In many ways, it almost eliminates the need to talk about it because now you can see it. The Pompidou Center was clearly an instigator for me, or an inspiration.

C: You’ve said that you wanted to bring the Air Max 1 as far as you could, without being fired. Do you think that making the best product possible always means pushing the envelope?
Tinker Hatfield: I think the more risky and the more innovative you get, the more uncomfortable people become, especially internally. The people who are worried about the bottom line on a daily basis, they’re afraid of the unknown because they’re looking for the sure bet, right?

C: You talked about the bottom line, and getting nervous about that; what specific gripes did the Nike suits have with the air bubble being exposed?
Tinker Hatfield: Generally something that’s actually a little more progressive, and well designed is either loved or hated. There’s no middle ground. I look for that kind of design-result. People will either love it or hate it. If they’re kind of in the middle, I think that means you didn’t do too much. That means you just sort of maintained some status quo. That’s simply not my job; that’s not what I care to do. I don’t want to be a status quo designer that skates by, with the lowest common denominator work.