Co-curated by the V&A’s Christopher Wilk and Elizabeth Bisley, the exhibition showcases over 120 plywood objects spanning from the 1850s to the present, including new acquisitions that are being publicly displayed for the first time. The exhibition explores early experiments of plywood to groundbreaking designs such as the WWII-era de Havilland Mosquito airplane. 

And don't forget to check out furniture pieces by modernist icons like Ray and Charles Eames, Alvar Aalto, Marcel Breuer, Grete Jalk, and Robin Day. 

The exhibition also focuses on three milestones in the evolution of plywood manufacturing: the invention of the rotary veneer cutter in the early 19th century; the advent of molding techniques that inspired 1930s modernism; and plywood’s more recent dominance as a material for CNC-cutting and digital fabrication.

Alvar Aalto, armchair, Finland, 1930
Alvar Aalto, armchair, Finland, 1930 © Alvar Aalto Museum, Photograph: Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

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 tells the story of how this often-overlooked material made the modern world. (from the exhibition website)