Phoenix Art Museum to Debut Major Nike Exhibition in April 2027

Nike: Form Follows Motion will explore five decades of sports innovation, iconic footwear, and global culture.

PHOENIX, Ariz. — Phoenix Art Museum will bring the history of one of the world’s most recognizable sports brands to the Valley next spring with Nike: Form Follows Motion, a major exhibition exploring five decades of design innovation, athletic performance, and cultural influence.

Opening April 14, 2027, the exhibition will be presented by PNC Bank and organized by Germany’s Vitra Design Museum. Phoenix Art Museum will be only the second institution in the United States to present this comprehensive exhibition, which draws primarily from Nike’s extensive Department of Nike Archives.

The exhibition will be on view in the museum’s Steele Gallery through September 26, 2027.

From Running Shoes to Global Cultural Influence

Founded in Oregon by former college runner Phil Knight and his coach, Bill Bowerman, Nike grew from a running-focused company into a global force in sports, fashion, and design.

Visitors will explore experimental prototypes, original design studies, and rare artifacts alongside some of the brand’s most recognizable innovations, including the Waffle Trainer, Air Force 1, Air Jordan, Air Max, Flyknit, and Vaporfly.

The exhibition is organized into four sections—Track, Air, Sensation, and Relation—each examining a different chapter in Nike’s evolution.

Track explores Nike’s early history in the 1960s, including Bowerman’s experiments that led to the Waffle Sole and the achievements of the Tennessee State University Tigerbelles, a celebrated track team of Black women who competed during the civil rights era.

Air examines Nike’s rise during the 1980s, including the development of the visible Air Sole and the introduction of the Air Max in 1987. Visitors will also discover how partnerships with athletes such as Michael Jordan, Serena Williams, and LeBron James helped shape the relationship between sports and popular culture.

Sensation takes visitors inside the science of athletic performance, highlighting Nike’s research into human movement, footwear technologies such as Nike Free and Vaporfly, and innovations in materials and manufacturing.

Relation explores Nike’s global cultural influence through groundbreaking footwear, artistic collaborations, and community-driven projects. The section examines how sneaker culture, music, and global subcultures helped transform athletic footwear into a form of personal expression.

Where Sports, Design, and Culture Meet

Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum, said the exhibition offers Arizona audiences an opportunity to explore how Nike has connected athletics, design, and contemporary culture across generations.

Rather than focusing exclusively on sneakers and sportswear, the exhibition examines how the needs of athletes have inspired innovations that eventually influence everyday style and self-expression.

PNC Bank is presenting the exhibition as part of its support for the arts and the communities they serve.

“At its core, the Nike: Form Follows Motion exhibition is about people, creativity and the evolution of ideas,” said Kyle Steinbuch, PNC regional president and head of Corporate Banking for Arizona.

Exhibition Book and Exclusive Merchandise

A companion 356-page publication will feature essays by scholars Sam Grawe, Adam Bradley, William Myers, Jared Dalcourt, and Ligaya Salazar. Illustrated with nearly 300 historical and contemporary images, the book will be available at The Museum Store inside Phoenix Art Museum, alongside exclusive exhibition-related merchandise.

The exhibition is curated by Glenn Adamson and assistant curator Marcella Hanika, with exhibition design by JA Projects and graphic design by Daniel Streat of Visual Fields.

Additional support comes from the Men’s Art Council, with in-kind support from Kimpton Hotel Palomar Phoenix.

Plan Your Visit

Nike: Form Follows Motion

• Location: Phoenix Art Museum, Steele Gallery, Phoenix, Arizona
• Opening date: April 14, 2027
• Closing date: September 26, 2027
• Presented by: PNC Bank
• Organized by: Vitra Design Museum

For exhibition details and museum information, visit phxart.org.

Source: Phoenix Art Museum press release dated October 19, 2026.

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