I was so pleased with my previous marker sketch that I couldn’t wait to get it into Illustrator. While I had to finesse a few lines and I changed the logo to a tonal deboss, there wasn’t really a whole lot else I felt compelled to change. 

I slimmed out the outsole slightly and increased the radius of the soleplate edge to provide smoother action when worn with bike clips. One of my biggest complaints about vulcanized rubber shoes is how the 90 degree edge of the sole base is always creating friction when you go to slide your foot into the clip. Those few seconds of fumbling are a giant pain in the ass when you’re trying to take a left at a busy intersection. The slim vamp and minimal toe will allow flawless clip function while the top half of the shoe can have the tongue popped for stylish city riding.

The name is a nod to the pot hole riddled avenue of death which I ride the most.

Lately I’ve been thinking about different ways to apply the ‘last’ logo on some of my conceptual designs. I wanted to play around with some large scale branding executions and expand my design aesthetic. Ironically, it was while sketching some directional fashion sneakers that I came across a thumbnail for a mid-cut skate style that would be optimal for a big logo treatment. 

Right off the bat, big branding on a shoe is going to alienate a large number of consumers. Combined with a mid-cut collar, this concept is going to appeal to a very select number of sneakerheads. What this shoe boasts is a lightweight foam midsole that is exposed in the heel and concealed in the front by the rubber outsole wrap. This will reduce the weight of the sole greatly while maintaining high abrasion protection from grip tape. The nylon plastic heel clip provides color balance with the forefoot outsole wrap and helps visually maintain a consistent midsole top line. 

The blucher construction of the upper and the closed seam between the eyestay and the forefoot quarterpanel will also ensure longer durability against flip tricks. While the double eyelet rows at the collar theoretically provide more lacing options, the second row of eyelets provides aesthetic integration with the large logo embroidery. The laser-cut microperforations of the big logo are balanced with an identical perf pattern on the front quarter.

I’m pretty pleased with the large branding execution. I was worried it would feel contrived or slapped on, but I think the tonal color blocking of the embroidery as well as its integration with the eyelets make it feel like an intentional design element.  This design would make a great performance skate shoe and the slim forefoot would serve you well with bike clips.