Matt Varga Updated August 31st, 2026: Jordan Brand has announced the first-ever winner of the Jordan Design Studio, a program activated across eight cities in an effort to tap into the creativity of the next generation of designers. Beijing, Chicago, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York, Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo all participated, but one winner was announced: Syn Zhuang of Beijing. She will continue to work with Jordan Brand to further work on the design with the end goal being a retail release.
Democratizing access to the various resources in their empire and knocking down some of the gates along the way has been a recent priority for Nike, Inc. While we saw our first seeds of it with the AirWorks program, enlisting eight creatives to work alongside Nike notables and Zellerfeld to put their personal stamp on custom-built 3D-printed silhouettes, Jordan Brand was running their own masterclass series in parallel.
The seeds of the Jordan Design Studio are now finally coming to light, the culmination of a globe-trotting set of workshops in various international metropolises where the city’s best got the chance to work alongside Jordan Brand collaborators. On top of having already walked the path that these budding designers dream of, names like Nina Chanel Abney, Chris Gibbs, Angelo Baque, and Hiroshi Fujiwara helped bring each city’s cohort from point of view to prototype.
As you can see below, there were few restrictions on how each individual creative could bring their ideas to life. All centered around the Air Jordan 1 “Love Letter,” truly experimental takes on His Airness’ first came to life. NYC’s Alaia Ryan brought multi-media executions, stacked Swooshes, and a custom NAYR Air patch to a yellow/red/green colorway. Chicago’s Chelsea B kept her expertise in crochet at the heart of hers, leaning into a cut-and-sew aesthetic with new fabric shrouds, collars, and toes.
Los Angeles’ Cheikh Tall pulled from his Ghanian heritage in placing the plaid market bag as a shroud around the shoe, anchored by literal handles that peek above the top. Closing out North America, Carlos “Calo” Eduardo Lopez Velasco almost echoes the Tisci Air Force 1 series with a radical reimagining, building out a smattering of leather, canvas, and suede panels that encapsulate the AJ1.
Expanding out, Yuji Wada of Tokyo executed what reads as a formalized version of the Jordan 1, leaning on crinkled textures, a blacked-out palette, and a dotted outline where the Swoosh usually resides. Beijing’s Syn Zhuang crafted a slouchy suede redux that clearly echoes women’s footwear, able to be “converted” by folding down the new foot entrance.
Jisoon Kim of Seoul, already experienced in reimagining Jordan silhouettes given he was behind Tyla’s custom Air Jordan 6 boots from WNBA All-Star, kept that same utilitarian look in mind with doubled and otherwise misplaced sections of the AJ1 body repeated across ultra-high hardware. Lastly, Shanghai’s GG Wu utilized distressed patterns, crackled textures, and modular details for a convertible Mid/Low depending on how you deploy its wraparound shroud.
All of these eight finalists will make the trip to The One Global Finals in Shanghai on August 29th, where one designer will be chosen as the global winner. Per Jordan Brand, their shoe will be produced and potentially released to the public. Check out studio shots of all eight below to help decide your favorite.
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