The Board Skateboard

About The Board Skateboard

The Board is a folding skateboard designed for easy transport and storage. The deck is made from 57 interlocking pivot hinges. By folding the hinges in one direction or the other, the classic cruiser shape is transformed into a perfect circle. In the circular form, The Board fits into a backpack and can be kept in narrow spaces or displayed as a decorative object at home. Aluminum, iron and plastic are used in the construction. The transformation process gives the design a clear visual appeal.

The Board Skateboard by CHEN,CHIA-WEI exemplifies a remarkable convergence of engineering innovation and sculptural sensibility within contemporary mobility design. This Golden A' Design Award recipient from 2021 demonstrates how functional objects may transcend their utilitarian origins to achieve aesthetic autonomy worthy of gallery contemplation. The designer appears to have fundamentally reconsidered the rigid plank form that has defined skateboard construction since the discipline's inception, instead proposing an articulated system of interlocking segments that permits the deck to assume radically different configurations—here displayed in its most dramatic presentation as a self-contained disc. The surface treatment reveals meticulous attention to both visual and tactile experience, with the diamond-pattern grooves suggesting enhanced grip functionality while simultaneously creating an optical rhythm that rewards extended viewing. One observes in this work a sophisticated dialogue between organic and mechanical references: the overall circular form and sawtooth perimeter evoke natural growth patterns, seed dispersal mechanisms, or the protective armor of certain fauna, while the precision fasteners and uniform segmentation speak to advanced manufacturing processes. The monochromatic material palette demonstrates admirable restraint, allowing form and texture to communicate without chromatic distraction. Viewers might consider how this object challenges assumptions about the relationship between flexibility and structural integrity, between playfulness and precision, between the objects we use and the objects we admire. What possibilities emerge when designers approach familiar typologies with radical openness to formal reinvention?