Last week, I was fortunate to visit Nike’s “The Art of Obsession” at LA Live, leading into the Mamba Invitational. The pop-up, celebrating the career of Kobe Bryant and his partnership with Nike, featured a “curated gallery experience celebrating the craftsmanship and innovation behind one of Nike’s most iconic basketball franchises.”
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“The Chick Hearn Experience” featured food, drink, live music featuring Deyra Barrera and her mariachi band, custom airbrushed Mamba shirts, and a live discussion introducing the Kobe 10 Protro.
Here’s Bleacher Report’s take, via Pat Benson, on the Kobe 10 Protro. The first two photos are courtesy of Nike; artist Troy Murray created the 3D sculpture.
Note the Mamba fangs on the bottom of the shoe in the second photo!
Per Nike, “The piece features 13 Kobe outsoles - from the Kobe 1-11 to the Kobe AD, and most interestingly, a previously-unseen outsole of a prototype that appears to be a preview of the next chapter of Kobe footwear.”
"Kobe started this project. We're committed to carrying it forward to the finish. More details soon," shared Kobe VP/GM Dan Sunwoo. “We’re working on launching the first unfinished project we started with Kobe. We are revisiting the prototypes we worked on together and will advance a legacy defined by a shared belief in the infinite pursuit of better.”
Some of my photos from the event:
