KicksGuide Artist Series 2005

Are you an artist? Do you love to design and render shoes? If so, then this place is devoted to you.

2005 Design of the Year

July 2005 - Lebron III.5

Edgar Vergara dominated the Artist Series in 2005. His performance includes 5 finalist appearances and an incredible 4 first place finishes. Furthermore, Edgar brought to the game 3D skills that has yet to be matched on KG. These realistic depiction of shoes seems ready for the production line and a Footlocker store nearest you. It is tough to say if the trend in '06 will lean towards computer 3D or hand sketches, but there's no question that Edgar has set a benchmark and new standard in '05. The Nike Lebron III.5 Air Zoom Claw. It is a worthy successor to '04 Rendering of the Year by Tony Hardman. The shoes blends in plenty of of the Golden Era nostalgia of the mid 90's but also feature a modern look and feel that will keep those heads turning.

2005 Artist of the Year

Pietro Pellicelli has captured the first Artist of the Year award. Mr.Consistent (aka Cal Ripken Jr of Artist Series) was able to make the finalist for all 10 themes of 2005. Pietro also remains the overall finalist leader with 19, 7 more than the next nearest artist. In August, Pietro also won the Mercedes SL - Low Top Convertible theme with the Jordan Seagull and demonstrated his thinking behind the high top low top convertible process with an animated Shockwave presentation.

RYAN HOLLER

Monday, June 20, 2005

June 2005 - Jordan XXI

Jordan XXI - 2nd place
If the Ace Jack theme was a book report, then Ryan's Air Jordan XXI would get an A for meeting the theme's requirement. The Aviator card deck gives a vintage Flight feel to this flagship. The card table and poker chips inspires the sole of the XXI. If the table top stood for the basketball court, the chip would symbolize a basketball. Competition and aggression is the name of the game in both sports. Much of the shoe design is inspired by the grandiose carpet design at the various casinos around the country. Finally, but not least, click on the image to show an animated image of a step by step conversion from high to low top.

Joe IM

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

September 2005 - Freestyle

Jordan Mars Blackmon - 3rd place
Joe Im's entry is inspired by the great Mars Blackmon.

Upper: Combination full-grain leather and nubuck upper takes subtle design cues from the AJ III and AJ V (Check the flames).

Midsole: Phylon midsole with regionalized zoom air cushioning for lightweight performance. The flex groove in the forefoot was inspired by the AJ XI. I basically wanted to keep the midsole clean and simple.

Outsole: This classic outsole was inspired by hanging tiles on the ceiling of Madison Square Garden. It's also dedicated to the infamous double-nickel performance. Another subtle cue here is the inscription on the circular pivot point which gives the address of MSG.

ZENITH CHANCE

Saturday, February 26, 2005

February 2005 - Garnett III

adidas a3 Garnett 3

Zen is back with his signature touch. The adidas a3 Garnett III uses a new "HUG system". Where adidas tried to hide the laceless technology in the T-MAC IV, Zenith rather exposes it. In addition, he incorporated the Ultra a3 cushioning technology for maximum cushioning and support.

EDGAR VERGARA

Thursday, May 26, 2005

May 2005 - Iverson X

Rbk Answer X
Edgar is 2 for 2 so far, winning both of his two entries in the Artist Series. Can he make it 3 for 3 and further extend this historic achievement? He's certainly making a strong case for it with the Rbk Answer X. The design is solid: lines flow nicely with a hint of TMAC inspiration; perforated holes for breathability; full grain leather upper; rear heel counter; all the logos are in the right place and small enough to not overpower the shoe. The overall look is also simple and 'generic' enough that Rbk just might put into production.

EDGAR VERGARA

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

March 2005 - Freestyle: All-Star

Air Huarache Plus Max

Edgar wasted little time to come back from his Ferrari win to submit a Huarache All-Star Edition worthy of Nike's production line right now. The borrowed inspirations from the current Huarache 2K4 and 2K5 are obvious. But it is the combination of futuristic styling with very classic old school cues that makes this shoe an instant standout.

Justin Taylor

Friday, October 21, 2005

Oct 2005 - K1x Freestyle

k1x X-1
This shoe is meant to be a high performance offering from K1X. It features a new lockdown strapping system. The strap wraps from the medial side to the lateral side, forming an "X" across the foot, and it snaps on the lateral side. The strap snaps into the ankle and the forefoot. At these points, the wearer can adjust the fit by sliding the tab up or down. The mesh windows on the medial and lateral sides offer excellent breathability while the heel and midfoot support chassis create stability. The cushioning system is comprised of a resilient urethane compound sandwiched between the support chassis and rubber outsole.

VENTSISLAV NIKOLOV

Thursday, April 28, 2005

April 2005 - Alphaproject: Inspired

Nike TBTF

Ventis's goal was to choose a loobster for his inspiration. He called the shoe "TBTF" , coming from what Alphaproject meant to him and what this shoe is about - "Think Forward-Tight Bacward ". It uses a special lace system which is coming from under the sole and ties at the back of the shoe. It also uses an air max system at the heel which is connected with the shoe with something like a spring connectors at both sides of the foot. This "connectors" enables the position of the laces which comes from the underside of the shoe. It's a part of the lobster inspiration, something like walking backward .

EDGAR VERGARA

Sunday, February 06, 2005

January 2005 - Ferrari 430

F430 Concept

Edgar's F430 concept is anything but what we'd expect from a 1st time submission. The 3D modeling showed Edgar's skills but it is the bronze/yellow/greenish mixture of a color that makes the design stand out. While we doubt there's any real production Ferrari in that color, it does show that he's willing to think beyond the box. This is the first of many monthly wins for Edgar in 2005.