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Art Mon Oct 07 2013
Art and Athletics: New Nike Store Hits Chicago's Bucktown Neighborhood
For Bucktown residents, there is a new [shoe] sheriff in town: Nike Running, Bucktown, located in the heart of the neighborhood, celebrated its grand opening this past Saturday. The concept store, opening just ahead of this year's Bank of America Chicago Marathon, will serve and provide resources for the area's runners. "This is really the first and only Nike store in the City of Chicago that was designed for runners and by runners," said Jim Beeman, General Manager, Nike Central Territory. "We really want to make sure we make this feel as comfortable for local athletes as humanly possible."
The contemporary store has a selling space of 3,000 square feet and boasts a modest selection of running shoes and stylish men's and women's athletic gear. It also features rafters for hanging marathon bibs, gait analysis, and a convenient Nike Plus Station for comparing Nike Plus runs, charging devices, etc.
In addition to accommodating local runners, Nike is giving back to the community as a way to encourage and motivate youth. "In conjunction with this store opening," said Beeman, "we will be making a $26.2K donation to Chicago Run and Girls on the Run, both to get kids active, specifically in the Bucktown community."
But for Nike, in addition to running, another activity deserves support. "We also want to celebrate the local community through the lens of the arts," said Beeman.
Nike acknowledges the role of the arts in the community through local photography, fashion and visual art: The Chicago edition of Nike Lunar Glide, one of the featured shoes, was designed by local artist Mike McQuade, while another Chicago-based artist, Hebru Brantley, created a mural along the store's south facade.
For Brantley, being commissioned by Nike to paint the mural for the Bucktown store was a natural fit. "It's always been a very arts-driven area," he said. "When I was a kid, obviously, this area was nothing like it is now, but I think over time, it's sort of built up and established by artists."
The mural features "Fly Boy," the heroic "character of color" that stars in most of Brantley's work; however for the Nike store, he decided to take a different approach. "Basically, I've always done them flying; I've never done them actually running or on the ground so it was a challenge. They're running into the store, actually."
Brantley, a self-admitted shoe lover, acknowledged the intersection of art and athletics, as well as the stylishness of today's apparel. "I think there's a balance in art in all sports," said Brantley. "I think that over time, from the shoes to the gear, as we become more stylish, it's that sort of cohesiveness that you kind of have to have one with the other."
Nike Running Bucktown is located 1640 N. Damen; for more information on Hebru Brantley, visit hebrubrantley.com.
Photos: Stephen Green Photography.