Viewing Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street, in collaboration with StockX

Of all the icons and collaborations that have shaped the sneaker-collecting phenomenon, Michael Jordan has to be the most influential. In 1984, aged just 21, the hotshot basketball player signed with Nike, forging a partnership that would re-write the rules of athletic endorsements and collectability.

His Jumpman brand now turns over billions in resales each year and commands the attention of fans and collectors the world over.

The cultural journey and meteoric rise of the sneaker resale market (currently valued at $6 billion) is now the subject of a new show at London’s Design Museum. This exhibition charts how this footwear phenomenon – initially seen primarily in terms of athletic function – has transformed and challenged performance design, inspired new cultures and shaken the world of fashion.

Also under consideration are the high-fashion brands that have shaped the sneaker scene (think Y-3, Comme des Garçons and Balenciaga), as well as the design process behind some of the most technically innovative examples, including the world’s first biologically active shoes developed by MIT Design Lan and Biorealize for Puma.

After a year of slippers and sliders, sneakers are making an almighty comeback splash.