The adidas Archives according to Frain

The story of design and sport is told by 10,000 shoe models, 9,000 pieces of clothing, and countless accessories and catalogs. These are the adidas archives, a solemn and sacred space that only a select few are permitted to visit. Frain, who tells us about his experience in the heart of adidas, is one of the lucky ones.

Frain, collector and more

Cristian “Frain” Damiani‘s background was ideal for becoming one of those fortunate few. Since he is a collector of sneakers as well as the narratives surrounding them, his work as a collector has a direct connection to the adidas archives. And adidas in Argentina has many stories to tell, not only about sporting successes related to adidas’s relevance in football, but also about the specific product created by and for Argentina. Cristian is the narrator of stories like Carlos Ruiz’s, the small store that served as a brand museum for decades.

So, when Cristian received the invitation to visit the adidas archives, he was the only one who was surprised. For the rest of us, it was a matter of time and a natural process.

The adidas archive

The adidas archive is located at the headquarters in Herzogenaurach, a name that Cristian pronounces with the fluency of someone who has said it a thousand times. Before you get there, he takes you on a tour that tells the story of the brand, some of its most celebrated models and a foundational part of its history: the desk on which Adi Dassler created adidas.

The reason the adidas archives are located at its headquarters is that they serve as a source of inspiration for the brand’s designers, from Gary Aspden‘s more respectful references to Jeremy Scott‘s more subversive ones. Everyone has been through the archives to learn more.

Among the spectacular adidas offices, which include grandiose buildings and sporting spaces where elite athletes train, the entrance to the archives has the theatricality of a workplace.

The mystique of archives

The archive’s liturgy includes constant humidity and temperature conditions at 18° and 55%, as well as a type of light specifically chosen to not harm the product, which adds to the atmosphere of mystique. A pristine white reminiscent of film recreations of the gates of heaven, a similarity I do not believe is coincidental. In addition, each visitor must wear gloves provided by the archive in order to touch the product. Frain, an advanced student, has had his own glove for years. Collector’s stuff.

Inside the archive, each sneaker is housed in a white box, with a visible label with information about the product, each garment has its own fireproof cover. Everything appears to be designed to impress the lucky visitor, but the reality is that it is only meant to preserve a legacy.

There are prototypes manufactured by Adi Dassler, models created for athletes, the first designs in collaboration with artists and designers or items related to great sporting achievements, the boot with which Messi played the final of the World Cup in Qatar, the boots used in “the miracle of Bern in 1954, the first Samba, the Supergrip that prepared the design of the Superstar, some Stan Smith from when they were still Haillet or the original Gazelles, in which the color marked its functionality.

When you ask Frain what impressed him the most and he mentions people rather than shoes, you can see the value of stories. Of the adidas employees in Latin America who brought him to Herzogenaurach and the Herzogenaurach employees who took it upon themselves to tell product stories and prepare an original Micropacer, his favorite shoe, to greet him. 

As Jacques Chassaing, the designer of Forum or the ZX saga, says in the preface of the book-catalog The adidas Archives, “it’s not just about illustrating the products, it’s about expressing the core values and the human side of adidas“.