Shortly after designing the immediately viral, intensely meme-able cover for Drake‘s Certified Lover Boy album, British artist Damien Hirst has gifted the Canadian rapper a hand-painted pair of Nike Air Force 1 Low . Revealed via an Instagram post from Hirst himself, the shoes feature abstract paint splatters and personalized messages, serving as a celebration of CLB‘s #1 spot on the Billboard charts and the two’s partnership.
An all-white Air Force 1 Shadow was used as the base for Hirst’s custom work, and the upper is splashed in streaks of orange, green, red, pink, yellow and blue. Midsoles are free of paint splatters, opting instead to serve as stationary for Hirst’s messages to Drake: the left shoe reads “For Drake” with hearts and squiggles on its lateral side, while the right shoe states “Big <3 Brother!" with a heart graphic.
Affection for the Nike Air Force 1 Pixel clearly runs in the Hirst family, as Damien Hirst’s son Cass Hirst gained notoriety for his own hand-painted pairs in years past. The elder Hirst is no stranger to street culture either, of course, having collaborated with everyone from Supreme to Vans.