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Rare Apple sneakers

Rare Apple sneakers sell for nearly $10K at Heritage Auctions

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Rare Apple sneakers
Apple ordered an unknown number of logo sneakers for its employees in the early 1990s. A pair sold at Heritage Auctions this week for $9,687 inclusive of the buyer’s premium. Heritage Auctions image

DALLAS – A rare pair of sneakers produced for Apple Computers exclusively for their employees in the early 1990s sold for nearly $10,000 during a highly successful auction of Urban Art held Tuesday, March 24, by Heritage Auctions. Absentee and Internet live bidding was available through LiveAuctioneers.

Bidding immediately jumped when the coveted piece of Apple memorabilia crossed the auction block. It took 20 bids to reach the sneakers’ $9,687 final auction price.

The brand’s vintage rainbow Apple logo is embroidered on the side of the white sneakers and the tongue as is the word “Apple.”  The sneakers are size 9½. These sneakers are so iconic that in 2018, Versace produced a prototype that looked identical to the pair Heritage auctioned March 24.

“These were a golden find for any Apple fan,” said Leon Benrimon, director of modern and contemporary art at Heritage Auctions. “No one really knows how many pairs of these corporate gifts survived over the last 30 or so years.”

The sneakers were offered in a sale of Urban Art, which featured work by well-known graffiti and street artists – even custom skateboards.

Rare Apple sneakers
KAWS (b. 1974) ‘4FT Dissected Companion (Black),’ early 21st century fiber-reinforced plastic, 50in x 20½in x 13inches, produced by Medicom Toy and OriginalFake, Tokyo. Price realized: $90,625. Image © 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

 

Many pieces surpassed estimates:

– A 4-foot-tall fiber-reinforced plastic sculpture titled 4FT Dissected Companion (Black), by noted artist Kaws, sold for $90,625, surpassing its $80,000 estimate.

– Follow Your Dreams, 2012, an acrylic, spray paint, collage on canvas, by street artist Mr. Brainwash, ended at $47,500 against a $25,000 estimate.

– An Untitled, 2011, a massive painting measuring 72-inches square by the artist Retna, sold for $40,000.

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