ASICS' GEL-KAYANO 14 Is Revived in Retro Gold-Tinged Colorway
Separate to the Kiko Kostadinov-related pairs, this sneaker looks to the archives and the idea of a “flash” for inspiration.
Japanese footwear giant ASICS first introduced the Toshikazu Kayano-designed GEL-KAYANO 14 back in 2008, and now the pair is set for a wide-releasing return designed by Hidenori Yamashita in a clean and classic colorway.
The style did recently drop as the UB1-S GEL-KAYANO 14, which saw Kiko Kostadinov and ASICS SportStyle work together on a non-collaborative release that Kostadinov oversaw, working on the style to explore materiality and color palettes. This new GEL-KAYANO 14 is different however, not including Kostadinov in its design process but instead enlisting Yamashita, which marks this as the first silhouette in a series to be designed by someone other than its original creator.
Speaking on the design language of the sneaker, Yamashita said, “The word I chose as inspiration for the GEL-KAYANO 14 is the idea of ‘Flash’. ‘Flash,’ for me, references the burst of action where the runner lands at the heel and pushes away at the toes. Whether it’s the color, the lines, the materials, the silhouette, or the texture — all aspects of the GEL-KAYANO 14 are designed with that idea of ‘flash’ in mind.”
The result is nothing short of nostalgic. Delivered in a stellar colorway comprising white mesh, metallic silver leather and metallic gold plastic overlays, the sneaker is intersected with black components such as the ASICS branding on the mid-panel and small “flash”-like details on the front-quarter. Black also details the tongue branding, the GEL-KAYANO 14 stamp on the gold heel structure, and the GEL branding on the rear.
Overall, the pair sports an improved and re-engineered upper thanks to material and fit improvements that elevate the shoe’s performance while maintaining its archived layered look. It also features the original GEL sole unit, which on this pair features the gray, gold, and white colors found on the upper.
Take a look at the ASICS GEL-KAYANO 14 above, and pick up a pair from ASICS’ website when it drops on December 18 for $140 USD.
In case you missed it, check out HYPEBEAST’s Sole Mates in which Slam Jam talks about its ASICS collaboration.
