Nike: Form Follows Motion

An unprecedented look at the design archives of the iconic sportswear brand.

In Autumn 2024 the Vitra Design Museum will present the first ever museum exhibition about Nike, the world’s most revered sport brand. The exhibition and this accompanying catalogue mark the milestones in Nike’s six decade history and explores its ascent into a global brand that holds a central role in popular culture. The focus of the exhibition is on Nike’s design practice – from the company’s beginnings in the 1960s and the design of its famous “swoosh” logo to iconic products such as Air Max Air Jordan and Vapor Fly, and current research devoted to future materials and sustainability.

The main source for the exhibition is the Department of Nike Archives, which contains a unique collection of drawings, prototypes and other documentation. The exhibition marks the most comprehensive access ever given to this archive. Among the objects on show are rarities and one-offs from the company’s early days in the 1960s, original design drawings and prototypes of iconic sneaker models, historical documents and films, as well as the results of collaborations with creative figures such as Virgil Abloh and Marc Newson.

Nike: Form Follows Motion traces Nike’s design process, which begins with the scientific analysis of the human body in motion and material research and culminates in the finished product and its branding. Along with Nike designers like Bill Bowerman, Diane Katz, Tinker Hatfield and Eric Avar, athletes – from the world’s greatest to the everyday – have played an important role in this design process.

Contributor Bio(s)

Mateo Kries is a German curator and writer, and the director of Vitra Museum.

Glenn Adamson is a Brooklyn-based design historian. He is an editor at Magazine Antiques and was formerly director of the Museum of Art & Design and curator of the Chipstone Foundation (Wisconsin).

Quotes/Reviews

It’s via an unwavering commitment to design that [Nike] embraces the endless pursuit of athletic betterment in all its forms; no garment or sneaker comes out from pure instinct. -Sophia De La Cruz / Wallpaper