Meet Graham, the brick outhouse designed to survive collision with a vehicle

He might look like that cousin you don't talk about, but Graham here is science's best guess at the sort of evolutionary street we'd need to turn down if we're going to keep getting hit by cars.

The TAC says Graham's grotesque features are what's needed to withstand the forces brought when hit by a vehicle - rather than the sort of forces we're designed to deal with, like "running at full pace into a wall".

"When you’re talking about collisions involving vehicles, the speeds are faster, the forces are greater and the chances of survival are much slimmer,” TAC chief executive officer Joe Calafiore said.

Graham forms part of the TAC's ongoing Towards Zero campaign and is the result of collaboration with trauma surgeon Christian Kenfield, crash investigator David Logan and Melbourne-based sculptor Patricia Piccinini.

Apart from the design of its buzzcut and begoatied mascot, the TAC's Meet Graham program also comes with a school curriculum to help schools integrate the project into their work with tomorrow's drivers.

“Graham is an educational tool that will serve the community for years to come as a reminder of why we need to develop a safer road system that will protect us when things go wrong,” Calafiore said.

Graham on show at the State Library of Victoria until August 8, before going on a roadshow. Victorians can also interact with Graham online at www.meetgraham.com.au.

More of Piccinini's work can be seen at www.patriciapiccinini.net.