At some point most of us have probably folded a paper boat and tried to float it in the bath, or local creek. Thibault Penven has gone one better.



The Swiss industrial design student has created the 'ar-vag', which translates to 'boat' in Breton (a Celtic language spoken in Brittany, France). The vessel is made from a series of fiberglass sheets covered with bright yellow, heat-welded plastic tarpaulin, reminiscent of the raincoats worn in Singing in the Rain.

To set sail, one unfolds the vessel, jams in the supporting rods (which look scarily similar to tent poles) and wedges a bench seat in the center, creating the final shape and giving the craft rigidity.

The ingenious construction was featured in the Design Miami Basel exhibition in Switzerland last month. The craft is more of a Sunday-arvo, splash-around-the-local-water-hole vessel than a escape-to-a-desert-island deal, but maybe Tom Hanks and his pal Wilson should be the judge of that. 

Images: ECAL