“Fragile” by Royal College of Art graduate Mireia Gordi i Vila is a collapsible and reusable design for packaging that can fit objects of varying sizes with ease thanks to a flexible and resilient elastic membrane. In effect, this innovative membrane when stretched acts like a kind of drum that protects valuable items.

As part of the development of Fragile, Gordi i Vila experimented with various materials ranging from gels to nylon nets. Experiments included mixing elastic textiles of several varieties including power mesh, spandex and nylon net along with soft prosthetics silicones, Pro 10 gel, PLAT 10 and PU gel. The resulting packaging material design is a stretchable, cushioning elastic composite membrane that is resilient, resistant and durable.

Thanks to this flexibility and durability, Fragile is able to safely enclose and protect objects with differing sizes and weight in a responsive, customized way as the flexible membrane creates a supporting skin that surrounds and protects fragile items such as valuable works of art – thus allowing for their safe transport and shipping.

Gordi i Vila’s idea is that Fragile could ultimately be used by galleries and museums to ship odd-sized and fragile items without resorting to wasteful amounts of packaging.

You can discvoer more about Fragile and other works by Gordi i Vila here.