Nike | ColorDry

Nike has done an amazing job being a technology leader in the sportswear / lifestyle market for years. They invented Flywire, Flyknit, Lunarlon… we could go on, but we’d be typing for a good two minutes solid, and there’s an episode of Magnum P.I. on our DVR we’re just itching to get to. Dry dying is a technique that actually saves the world by reducing the water used in dying clothing to zero. Pretty good reduction if you ask us… It’s a rather remarkable process. Dry pigment is literally baked into the fibers of fabric through heat and pressure creating the most brilliant, evenly spread color across the entire roll of fabric. Nike coined this process “Colordry” and AKQA came to us to help them tell that story. Together we crafted this piece, which has become a permanent fixture on Nike’s Better World site. On top of creating the film with AKQA, we also supplied some hi-res artwork for the site itself, unifying the experience in the same design. The idea is to start with a single “mote” of color. Abstract, like a little world all to itself. As the pressure inside this chamber increases, the mote collapses in on itself, releasing color. At the same time, it begins to fall into the fabric like meteorites hitting the Salton Sea. Each mote impact spreads more color across the landscape. It’s a turbulent scene that culminates in a grand reveal of a single, perfectly constructed Colordry jersey suspended in a roaring stadium hallway. It speaks to sport, and abstracts the process into something bigger than itself. Nike’s saving the world one jersey at a time… and they’re looking pretty good while they do it. Now if they can get on making a line of Hawaiian-inspired shirts, we’d be in dry-dye heaven. I was responsible for leading the texture, look development and lighting of the entire advertisement.