Mosquito
The de Havilland Mosquito, 1941
Plywood's most technologically significant use from the 1910s to 1945 was as a material for aeroplane design. Its strength and lightness allowed for the construction of radical new planes that revolutionised the nature of flight. In the early 1910s, ground-breaking experiments with moulded plywood allowed for the construction of the first enclosed, streamlined aeroplane fuselages. These moulded plywood shells – known as 'monocoque' – were strong enough to be self-supporting, meaning that the planes did not need significant internal structure or cross-bracing. The revolutionary 'monocoque' fuselage became standard in future aeroplane design.
The British de Havilland Mosquito (DH-98) was the fastest, highest-flying aeroplane of the Second World War. Its moulded plywood monocoque fuselage made it light and quick enough to fly without defensive weaponry. The Air Ministry initially wanted to commission a metal plane. De Havilland convinced them to trial the Mosquito as a low-cost design that could be made relatively cheaply using workers from furniture and other wood working factories in Britain, Australia and Canada.
[V&A]
Part of Plywood: Material of the Modern World
(July to November 2017)
Plywood is made by gluing together thin sheets of wood called veneers, with the grain of each sheet running in an alternate direction. This creates a material that is stronger and more flexible than solid wood. The technique has been around for a long time – as early as 2600 BC in ancient Egypt – but it was not until the 1850s that plywood started to be used on an industrial scale.
Featuring groundbreaking pieces by Alvar Aalto, Marcel Breuer and Charles and Ray Eames, alongside an incredible range of objects from planes to skateboards, this exhibition told the story of how this often-overlooked material made the modern world.
[V&A]
Mosquito
The de Havilland Mosquito, 1941
Plywood's most technologically significant use from the 1910s to 1945 was as a material for aeroplane design. Its strength and lightness allowed for the construction of radical new planes that revolutionised the nature of flight. In the early 1910s, ground-breaking experiments with moulded plywood allowed for the construction of the first enclosed, streamlined aeroplane fuselages. These moulded plywood shells – known as 'monocoque' – were strong enough to be self-supporting, meaning that the planes did not need significant internal structure or cross-bracing. The revolutionary 'monocoque' fuselage became standard in future aeroplane design.
The British de Havilland Mosquito (DH-98) was the fastest, highest-flying aeroplane of the Second World War. Its moulded plywood monocoque fuselage made it light and quick enough to fly without defensive weaponry. The Air Ministry initially wanted to commission a metal plane. De Havilland convinced them to trial the Mosquito as a low-cost design that could be made relatively cheaply using workers from furniture and other wood working factories in Britain, Australia and Canada.
[V&A]
Part of Plywood: Material of the Modern World
(July to November 2017)
Plywood is made by gluing together thin sheets of wood called veneers, with the grain of each sheet running in an alternate direction. This creates a material that is stronger and more flexible than solid wood. The technique has been around for a long time – as early as 2600 BC in ancient Egypt – but it was not until the 1850s that plywood started to be used on an industrial scale.
Featuring groundbreaking pieces by Alvar Aalto, Marcel Breuer and Charles and Ray Eames, alongside an incredible range of objects from planes to skateboards, this exhibition told the story of how this often-overlooked material made the modern world.
[V&A]