Michael Le Every season, Junya Watanabe proves his undying loyalty to New Balance, offering up a number of collaborative releases every Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter collection. For the latter half of this year, it seems the designer has selected the 574 V1 Hiker, a mid-top class frame that essentially lenses the heritage classic through outdoors rigidity.
What carries over from past capsules is Watanabe’s penchant for understated colorways. Though prepared in three different palettes, they all essentially lie on the same tonal spectrum, bearing shades of cream, white, and then black. Logo hits, such as the Ns along the side as well as the mountain-accented tongue label, do add a bit of contrast at their expected points, though the same cannot be said for the “eYe” text that’s imprinted into the heel tab. Elsewhere, trail-specific tweaks come into play: the topmost eyelets are replaced with two boot-inspired speed hooks, the lining adds what looks to be fleece for extra warmth, and the new height protects just a bit more than the 574 would ordinarily.
Grab a detailed look at these below while we wait for an incoming Fall 2021 release.
In other news, the CdG HOMME New Balance 57/40 was just revealed yesterday.
Junya Watanabe x New Balance 574 V1 Hiker
Release Date: Upcoming 2021
Photos: Fashion Snap
