Most surfboards hide what lies beneath the rider. Tidal Wave, a transparent surfboard prototype by Igor Dzukovski, does the opposite. Its deck is cut open so the water itself becomes part of the board’s surface.
Dzukovski, an industrial designer, built the board to put the sea at the center of the experience. Performance is secondary. The project asks what a surfer could see and feel if the board stopped blocking the view.
The answer depends on transparency used as structure rather than decoration. Instead of painting graphics onto a solid shell, the design lets the water’s light, depth, currents and reflections pass through the board and show up on its body.
A skeleton that lets the ocean in
The frame of this carbon-fiber surfboard is left exposed on purpose. Thin, curving ribs form a skeleton that holds the board’s shape while leaving wide openings in the deck.
Transparency here is a design choice, not just a visual effect, and the same idea shows up in small hardware too. Lenovo’s see-through wireless mouse design shows how clear materials can expose the inner workings of an everyday object.
Those ribs do real work. They supply the stiffness a surfboard needs necessary for aquatic handling, and they keep the weight low enough to handle in the water. Through the openings, a rider looks down at the sea floor rather than at foam and resin.
The stern carries a custom pectoral fin made with 3D printing. Dzukovski chose additive manufacturing because it can produce the fin’s complex sculptural geometry. The fin is designed to guide water flow and improve how the board turns.
Its color is intentional. Fluorescent yellow sets the fin apart from the pale carbon structure and the clear resin around it, so it reads clearly against the rest of the board.
Showing the process of a transparent surfboard prototype
Tidal Wave was shown at Expo 2020 Dubai and at Dubai Design Week 2021. In both settings, this design made its materials visible as well as its form.
If you want another take on surfboards as crafted objects, bear-scarred cedar boards finished in Kyoto urushi lacquer take the opposite route, keeping the wood’s history visible under a glossy finish.
That choice is the project’s central idea and a new direction for surfboard design. Dzukovski treats composites and 3D printing as features to be read, not hidden under paint. The board becomes a frame, and the ocean around it becomes the picture.
H/T designboom.com
Frequently asked questions
Who designed the Tidal Wave transparent surfboard?
Tidal Wave was designed by Igor Dzukovski, an industrial designer. It is a transparent surfboard prototype whose deck is cut open so the water becomes part of the board’s surface.
What is the main goal of the Tidal Wave surfboard design?
The design aims to put the sea at the center of the surfing experience, with performance treated as secondary. It explores what a surfer could see and feel if the board stopped blocking the view of the ocean.
What do the carbon-fiber ribs on the Tidal Wave board do?
The thin, curving carbon-fiber ribs form a skeleton that holds the board’s shape and provides the stiffness needed for handling in the water. They also keep the board’s weight low, while leaving wide openings in the deck.
Why was 3D printing used for the Tidal Wave’s fin?
Dzukovski chose 3D printing, also called additive manufacturing, because it can produce the fin’s complex sculptural geometry. The fin is designed to guide water flow and improve how the board turns, and its fluorescent yellow color makes it stand out against the pale carbon and clear resin.
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