Wicker Man

Robert Emslie

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Wicker Car Main

In Boston they may say that a car is wicked cool, but in Nigeria, this VW is wicker cool. Woven by 40 year old artisan Ojo Obaniyi as a means of advertising his work and showing his talent, the car is covered inside and out with raffa palm cane. Obaniyi has 20 years experience weaving Raffa cane and it shows as even the complex curves of the dashboard and steering wheel have been given the wicker treatment.

Palm Car

Missing from the little pickup are niceties like outside door handles and a bulkhead between the two-toned passenger compartment and the tiny load floor in back. Weather protection is likewise in short supply, but that’s okay because like your patio furniture a wicker car is probably all right left out in the rain.

Weaving

Quoted as saying, “I wanted to prove a point that it is not only the educated elite that can make positive changes in society,” Obaniyi claims his efforts weren’t just meant to drum up business, but also as demonstration of the value of artisans who may lack education but whose talents can still bring benefit to the world. While the question of whether the world actually needs wicker cars is open to debate, the fact that this one demonstrates ingenuity, artistry, and talent, is inarguable.

Source: [DesignBoom]

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Robert Emslie

Robert Emslie

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27 responses to “Wicker Man”

  1. MVEilenstein Avatar
    MVEilenstein

    Dude's got serious skill.

    Reply
  2. topdeadcentre Avatar
    topdeadcentre

    Valentine's Day is almost here… Candy is dandy, but wicker is quicker!

    Reply
  3. Sjalabais Avatar
    Sjalabais

    Nice work! Would be fun to see driver and passengers alike slide in their seats from left to right and back again on a track.

    Reply
  4. Alff Avatar
    Alff

    He bought it as a basket case.

    Reply
    1. danleym Avatar
      danleym

      Would be crazy to see that weaving in and out of traffic.

      Reply
      1. Rust-MyEnemy Avatar
        Rust-MyEnemy

        Watch him cane it on the straight.

        Reply
        1. $kaycog Avatar
          $kaycog

          That's really the last straw.

          Reply
  5. OA5599 Avatar
    OA5599

    When his wife and mother-in-law take it out for a spin, it turns into a Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet.

    Reply
    1. Alff Avatar
      Alff

      Nah, I'm sure they're very nice ladies.

      Reply
      1. OA5599 Avatar
        OA5599

        It also does it when his dog is in season.

        Reply
  6. Wolfie Avatar
    Wolfie

    That is some real ingenious craftsmanship. I looked it on wickerpedia.

    Reply
    1. $kaycog Avatar
      $kaycog

      Good one!

      Reply
  7. MVEilenstein Avatar
    MVEilenstein

    I find this interesting from a sociological perspective; weaving is a skill learned by millions of people over the millennia, and still an essential skill in many societies. This guy has applied a primitive skill in a thorougly modern context – the car. In a word – cool. Very cool.

    Reply
    1. Felis_Concolor Avatar
      Felis_Concolor

      What I'm enjoying is the unappreciated ubiquity of woven materials in our daily lives, and how this serves as a reminder of its prevalence.
      Plus, you can park this next to a Lexus LFA and one-up its owner. "Yeah, that's nice – but I wove my A-pillars by hand."

      Reply
      1. MVEilenstein Avatar
        MVEilenstein

        Very good point. The same basic principle hasn't changed, whether it's a lattice pie crust or a carbon fiber F1 monocoque. Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

        Reply
    2. Scandinavian Flick Avatar
      Scandinavian Flick

      Dude….
      <img src="http://i.minus.com/ixvXvegecKiUM.gif&quot; width="200">

      Reply
      1. MVEilenstein Avatar
        MVEilenstein

        Picture is dead.

        Reply
        1. Scandinavian Flick Avatar
          Scandinavian Flick

          Weird. Works for me even when I hard refresh it…
          Here's another image that expresses the same thing, but hosted on a different site.
          <img src="http://i.imgur.com/bnhj3.gif&quot; width="300">

          Reply
          1. MVEilenstein Avatar
            MVEilenstein

            Dude.

  8. POLAЯ Avatar
    POLAЯ

    …like it was made for it….
    <img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/The_Basketweave.svg/405px-The_Basketweave.svg.png"&gt;
    <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Basketweave” target=”_blank”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Basketweave

    Reply
  9. POLAЯ Avatar
    POLAЯ

    It may sport some utility with the bottomless party in the back,
    <img src="http://oldstersview.files.wordpress.com/2006/07/wicker_car.jpg?w=414&h=269"&gt;
    but can you Hoon it?

    Reply
  10. POLAЯ Avatar
    POLAЯ

    Don't let the Yoots get a hold of this, or wicker may have a dark future…
    <img src="http://www.vincentchow.net/images/homemade-spoiler_008.jpg"&gt;
    Look out carbon fiber!

    Reply
    1. MVEilenstein Avatar
      MVEilenstein

      Canadians.

      Reply
      1. Scandinavian Flick Avatar
        Scandinavian Flick

        <img src="http://i.imgur.com/t435Q3Z.jpg&quot; width="300">

        Reply
      2. POLAЯ Avatar
        POLAЯ

        Well, lots of the Wood are belong to us!

        Reply
  11. Tomsk Avatar
    Tomsk

    Obligatory.
    [youtube Z3L3TWwdxpo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3L3TWwdxpo youtube]

    Reply
  12. vroomsocko Avatar
    vroomsocko

    <img src="http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/149/682/its-beautiful.jpg&quot; width="300">

    Reply