They are not entirely 3D printed (well theoretical they are, since Nature does build in a generative and additive way), even so the Open Toys created by LeFabShop are just going to make you (or your kids) want to get your veggies, if not to eat them, to play with them.
This is something destined to have a broad appeal. I know it because I was told about it by my aunt in London, who is a ceramic artist and has been quite reluctant to delve into the possibilities of digital manufacturing. Still her attention was captured by the Open Toys because she also has a passion for growing greens in her garden, and the idea of personalizing zucchinis (UK translation is courgettes), eggplants (aubergines), potatoes and carrots, turning them into helicopters, submarines and airplanes by adding some 3D printed parts is just on target.
The idea for the Open Toys came to LeFabShop’s Samuel N. Bernier in 2013, while mixing 3D printed parts with wood and cork pieces in a workshop supervised by Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola. While collecting from his own garden he had the idea to apply the same concept to vegetables, which turned out to be even better (although more ephemeral) as they did not require any tools to be assembled.
The project was then completed by Thomas Thibault and presented during the Autodesk Pop Up Gallery in Paris as a Mr. Potato Head for the personal, digital fabrication age. It consists of 14 easy to 3D print parts of land, sea and aerial vehicles, such as wheels, helixes, spoilers and wings. Which, incidentally, are some of the parts that are really beginning to be additively manufactured even at an industrial level, so the toys could be a great learning experience for the engineers.
To help promote the publication of their new book, which was announced last week, LeFabShop has published the entire Open Toys series on some the most popular 3D model networks (Thingiverse, YouMagine and Cults3D): the project is open and the team’s hope is that the communities will continue to develop and expand the range of open toys available. Or, you can just eat them.
