DENIM TEARS X GEL-MC PLUS

ASICS and Denim Tears announce their first ever collaboration. Part of a two-sneaker pack built on the GEL-MC PLUS™ model, marks the first-time this silhouette has been used as part of an artist collaboration and brought back from ASICS’ 1990s performance running model.

The pack was built by Denim Tears founder, Tremaine Emory. The artist-merchant and creative director’s design inspiration came from the 'Georgia red clay dirt' in Harlem, Georgia. “Harlem is a one red light town where both sides of my family are from. I spent every summer in that small town and by the end of the summer, my older brother's and I sneakers were red from running and playing in the dirt,” said Emory. “The same red dirt our elders walked, ran, played, and died in. Ultimately, we come up from the red clay and eventually return to it in the end - the in-between is our life.”

Originally created by GEL-LYTE™ III shoe designer, Shigeyuki Mitsui in 1995, the GEL-MC PLUS™ sneaker returns from the ASICS running archive with a reimagined midsole design.

This 90s performance model emphasises the notion of “Motion Control,” featuring its nylon midfoot strap. Technical for its time, it has been redesigned with the midsole with the GEL-CUMULUS® 17 running shoe tooling to evolve the design’s retro aesthetic. Built with hits of pigskin nubuck and blended with tumbled leather, the design emulates the impact of walking on the Georgia Red Clay through a burnished and brushed midsole.