Skip the Gallery, Squat on the Sculpture: Technogym at Design Miami.

The nexus of style, functionality, and holistic well-being was dramatically realized at Miami Design Week 2025, where Technogym presented Design to Move. Marking the brand’s 40th anniversary, the exhibition served as a powerful manifesto, celebrating the deep, often overlooked, connection between meticulous design and the human pursuit of wellness. This was not merely an equipment showcase; it was an exclusive US debut and a curated cultural experience that positioned fitness objects as essential components of contemporary haute design.

At the heart of the immersive display, which was created in collaboration with famed Architect and Designer Giulio Cappellini and curated by Bruna Roccasalva, lay five unique reinterpretations of the iconic Technogym Bench.

The original concept for Design to Move saw 40 visionary artists and designers invited to use the multifunctional Technogym Bench as a canvas. The Miami exhibition distilled this global effort into a focused presentation of five masterworks, each a statement of artistry, social responsibility, and the transcendence of function into form.

The Five Statements of Wellness Artistry
The selected Benches showcased in Miami provided a striking dialogue between material innovation and expressive design:

“Rocky Bench” by Patricia Urquiola: The Spanish designer’s piece emphasized tactility and physical presence. Constructed in Cimento, the bench became a sculptural object, demonstrating a raw yet refined aesthetic that challenged traditional notions of gym equipment.

“Bench Press” by Nendo: True to their reputation for conceptual simplicity, Nendo’s interpretation used minimalism and humor to reflect on the concepts of motion and exertion, proving that wellness equipment can carry a light-hearted, thought-provoking narrative.

“Pure White” by Walter De Silva and Mario Antonioli: This bench focused on minimalist integration. It was composed to seamlessly blend into sophisticated domestic space, focusing on balance and the non-obtrusive presence of wellness objects in the modern home.

“Bönan Bench” by Michele Bönan: Bönan’s design was a celebration of performance-driven luxury. It married high-tech materials like carbon fiber with sumptuous natural leather, elevating the training station to an object of high-end, functional furniture.

“Echo” by Gustavo Martini: Martini delivered a rhythmic, spatial interpretation that explored repetition, perception, and flow. The work transformed the bench into an artistic piece that reflected the very movement it facilitates.

The Wellness Philosophy in Focus
The exhibition underscored Technogym’s foundational belief that design and technology, when elevated together, possess the power to enhance human potential. By transforming a piece of functional home gym equipment into an expressive work of art, Design to Move succeeded in blurring the lines between the fitness studio and the living room. It proposed a refined cultural practice—one where performance, beauty, and Technogym’s Italian craftsmanship converge to make the pursuit of health and well-being a central tenet of the contemporary luxury lifestyle.

The Design to Move project will ultimately serve a higher purpose, as the full collection of benches created for the 40th anniversary milestone will be auctioned off in collaboration with Sotheby’s, with all proceeds being donated to UNICEF.