The Adicolor concept was launched by adidas

Adidas

Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...

 in 1983 where trainers (sneakers)

Athletic shoe

Athletic shoe is a generic name for the footwear primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise but in recent years has come to be used for casual everyday activities....

 were sold with the tools that they could be customised by the purchaser.

The "adicolor" sneaker was an all white training shoe was specifically created for the adicolor concept. Presented in a wooden box, the adicolor low-top shoe comes with an all-white track jacket, a set of six colored acrylic paints, paintbrushes, and a wooden palette. The white leather can also be coated with sealant before or after painting.

In 2005 Adidas re-launched Adicolor as a replica of the original. Trainers include characters on them such as "Trimmy" "Betty Boop" "Mr Happy" "Tron" "Miss Piggy", "Kermit the Frog" and Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...

.

There are similarities between the 1983 version and the 2005 version such as the "ghilly" lacing system and a rubber outsole. Each pair comes with two types of laces, one containing Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...

's quote, "For all those colours which you wish to be beautiful, always start with a fresh white ground".

One of the Adicolor range was criticised by the Organization of Chinese Americans

Organization of Chinese Americans

Founded in 1973, the Organization of Chinese Americans is a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans in the United States...

 for presenting a stereotyped image of Asians.

In 2006 Adidas released 7 directors' shorts corresponding to each of the main colors in the line:

• White - Tronic
  Tronic
  Tronic is the third solo album by hip hop producer and rapper Black Milk, released on October 28, 2008 through Fat Beats Records. The album was produced by Black Milk, and features guest appearances from DJ Premier, Pharoahe Monch, Sean Price, Royce da 5'9" and Dwele. The album's lead single was...
  
  
  
• Red - Roman Coppola
  Roman Coppola
  Roman Coppola is an American film director and music video director.-Early life:Coppola was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of set decorator/artist Eleanor Coppola and Francis Ford Coppola. Coppola was born in the American Hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine while his father was in Paris...
  
   & Andy Bruntel
  
• Blue - Psyop
  
• Yellow - Neill Blomkamp
  Neill Blomkamp
  Neill Blomkamp is an Afrikaner-Canadian film and advertisement writer and director. Blomkamp employs a documentary-style, hand-held, cinéma vérité technique, blending naturalistic and photo-realistic computer-generated effects. He is best known as the co-writer and director of critically acclaimed...
  
  
  
• Green - Happy
  
• Pink - Charlie White
  Charlie White
  Charlie White is a Los Angeles-based artist.White received his BFA in 1994 from the School of Visual Arts, New York, and received his MFA from Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California, in 1998...
  
  
  
• Black - Saiman Chow
  

External links

• adicolor 2006:Self expression and customization - press release 2005.