← Selected work

Delta Global Events / Footwear concept

The Ascent.
Cabin to culture.

I designed this Delta-inspired Air Force 1 concept for the Global Events team. I wanted the connection to the cabin to come through in the materials and details.

The Ascent navy footwear concept worn on a wet city street, with a subtle puddle reflection
Concept visualization / AI-generated city setting based on the supplied shoe design. One of seven presented directions.

Explore the form.

Rotate the model to see how the materials and details carry around the shoe.

3D concept study / Drag to rotate. Open full screen ↗

The challenge

The Global Events team needed footwear that could bring the group together at activations and still feel like something each person would want to wear.

My role

I developed the framing, design language, and rationale for The Ascent. My work occupied the presentation’s opening seven pages.

Presentation context

The Ascent was chosen to open the presentation of seven design directions.

Concept proposal / September 2026

Strategic framing / The ask

Where comfort
meets flair.

Create a custom Nike Air Force 1 concept for Delta’s Global Events team to wear at key activations and events.

I wanted the team to look connected without treating the shoe like a uniform with a logo added. The materials had to do some of the storytelling.

Establish the language.
Then shape the design.

I started with Delta’s colors and the things people actually see and touch in flight.

Digital blue
Dark blue
Grey
Red
White
Sky blue

Aircraft exterior

I looked at aircraft metals and plastics for details that could work at the scale of a shoe.

Cabin experience

The cabin gave me a reference for padding, leather, and small fabric labels.

Material character

I explored leather and suede because the surface needed to reward a closer look.

For The Ascent, I narrowed those references to navy leather, cabin-inspired stitching, and a ticket tucked inside the tongue.

A reason for every detail.

I kept coming back to the Delta One seat. Its padding, leather, and labels gave the shoe a specific starting point.

Three-quarter angled concept view showing navy leather, quilted toe and vamp, tonal Swoosh and white midsole
Three-quarter view / Texture and silhouette.
Rear concept view showing Delta heel branding, red widget tabs and the purple Delta One ticket inside both tongues
Rear view / Delta One-inspired tickets inside the tongues.

Design references / Cabin details

Purple Delta One-inspired ticket proposed for the inside tongue tag

The inside tongue tag

I tucked a Delta One-inspired ticket inside the tongue so it would be a detail the wearer discovers.

Small red Delta tag beside the stitched leather seam of a cabin seat

The cabin seat tag

The red cabin tag gave me a small, recognizable accent without covering the shoe in branding.

Close-up of blue quilted leather on a Delta One seat

The leather texture

I used pebbled navy leather and diamond stitching to bring the seat’s texture into the shoe.

On-foot concept visualization of The Ascent navy footwear

From rationale to presentation

A shared identity.
An individual expression.

I wanted the team connection to hold up away from an event. The shoe should feel considered on its own, with enough Delta detail for someone who knows where to look.

Presentation concept imagery. Rear and on-foot views are AI-retouched from the supplied proposal visuals.

From a wearable concept to full-fleet imagery.Aircraft imagery & animation direction ↗