Start at the side of the shoe. Blue lines sweep forward across white leather, crossing red and blue strips on their way. The sole is low, the toe is pale and the animal in the brand name seems to be missing.
Onitsuka Tiger’s MEXICO 66 gives us a different kind of tiger to look for. Follow the lines, then turn the shoe around.
MEXICO 66, shown in Onitsuka Tiger’s official anniversary feature. Source: Onitsuka Tiger
A Stripe You Can Follow
In the official photograph, the blue bands narrow towards the heel and spread apart towards the front. Shorter strips cross them. The stitching gives each line an edge you can trace.
It is an enjoyable detail because it works at two distances. From a little way off, you see a broad shape against the white shoe. Up close, that shape separates into overlapping pieces, seams and small changes of direction.
The name supplies the animal; the side mark gives you a shape to remember. You can be interested in that shape without knowing a single model number.
Two Dates Worth Keeping Apart
The brand dates the first appearance of its stripe to 1966. Its official anniversary feature places the arrival of the modern MEXICO 66 in 2002, bringing together details from earlier shoes.
That distinction makes the name more interesting. A familiar number can point towards a design’s roots, while the shoe bearing it belongs to a later chapter. You are looking at an arrangement of old details made into something new.
There is no need to learn the whole family tree to enjoy the result. It simply helps to know that the date of a stripe and the date of a model can tell different stories.
Source: Onitsuka Tiger
Turn It Around
The back is worth a look of its own. On the white shoe pictured here, “Tiger” appears in blue on the heel tab. Below it, stitched white pieces cross into an X.
The anniversary feature traces those heel details to the second Limber Up, released in 1961. A small tab and a pair of crossing pieces carry their own piece of the shoe’s history.
That is also a pleasant way to explore any familiar object: look at the side you usually miss. Here, the sweeping lines introduce the shoe, while the heel gives you something smaller to discover.
Source: Onitsuka Tiger
Image credits: Onitsuka Tiger. This independent article is not sponsored or endorsed by Onitsuka Tiger.
