SUPERYACHT #513
January 2005
Article selected from our quarterly magazine dedicated to the largest
and most luxurious boats with information, interviews, technical
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Article by
Franca Urbani
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30 WORKS OF ART
FOR 30 METRES OF YACHT
The brand new 30-metre Baglietto motor yacht with 30 works of art
on board: one for each linear metre
A new 30-metre motor-yacht has been created in the Baglietto
boatyard, characterised by the on-board presence of no less than 30
works of art. The overall conception of this large boat is the
result of the happy encounter between the brilliant intuition of
the external lines by the architect Francesco Paszkowsky, with
studio in Florence and the creation of the interiors by the Aiello
studio in Genoa. The originality of the interiors is due to their
fittings but above all to the introduction of works of art as an
integral part of the project. The result is one of extreme beauty
and great modernity. For this reason we wanted to find out more
about the designers and so we went to pay them a visit in their
studio, in a wonderful building situated in Genoa's historical
centre, in Piazza San Marcellino, right next to the via del Campo
sung about by De AndrŠè, that runs along the port and is
experiencing a surprising new burst of life. The studio, founded in
1978, together with the Siracusa branch in Sicily, set up in 1988,
specialises in architectonic research and design. A few years ago
the Aiello studio also started work in London. The offices in
Siracusa and London are run by the architects Carmen and Lorenzo
Aiello, the original founders, while the office in Genoa is the
result of collaboration by the architects Leonardo Ferraro, Angelo
Molinari and Fabrizio Pellegrini, to mention just a few. Without
doubt this mix of cultures has led to results that are innovative
and interesting from many points of view.
Experience in the sailing sector, which started with the study of
interiors for the large ships built by Fincantieri, has arrived at
the design of interiors for super-yachts and this dimension has
proved to be extremely congenial to the designers' creativity.
Teamwork by the Paszkowsky and Aiello Studios has resulted in the
creation of a motor-yacht with decidedly innovative lines, above
all where distribution of internal spaces is concerned. In fact,
the owner's request for great importance to be given to his suite
and to the VIP cabin led the designers to create a room that if
necessary can be divided into two cabins, a double and a twin.
Elaboration of the interiors turned out to be fairly work
intensive, but the final results satisfied the designers and more
importantly, were fully appreciated by the owner. The architects'
work therefore reached out to enthusiastically include the purely
artistic field with research into the works of art to be collocated
on the yacht, in context with its design and meeting precise
requests by the owner, a cultured, sensitive person, who wanted his
love for all that is beautiful to show in the spaces he inhabits
and therefore also on his boat. The choice of the paintings was
dictated by the artistic taste of the owner and thus a true
treasure hunt got underway for the two architects, in a quest for
the pieces judged to be the most beautiful and most suitable. The
living area was deliberately enriched with modern works whose
colours matched those of the orange and red painted walls that
characterise the part of the saloon towards the bows of the yacht.
Here it was almost natural to collocate a work by Karel Appel, a
Dutch painter born in Amsterdam in 1921 and founder of the Cobra
group together with Alechinsky, Jorn and Corbeille. Appel, a
painter with many artistic sides to him, holds exhibitions all over
the world and experiments with the most wide-ranging of techniques,
one example of his versatility being precisely his painting present
on the yacht in question. Next to such an individual and important
piece it was decided to hang something completely different from a
technique and visual aspect. It seemed natural to turn to a great
work in ceramic by Pierre Boncompain, made in Vallauris, on the
C•òte d'Azur and depicting an oriental dancer. The ceramic
harmoniously completes the wall. These are the two works that
strike you with their strong personality as soon as you enter the
living area, but as you proceed to the right immediately after the
sliding entrance door, you find a large painted bronze statue by
the famous sculptor Alfonso Bonavita. This work, placed on a red
lacquered unit stands out due to the extraordinary incisiveness of
its sculpture.
Meanwhile to the left, there is a splendid cachepot by De Poli in
enamelled copper with marine decorations and salamanders. De Poli
production is famous above all for collaboration with Gi•ò
Ponti who, during the fifties, gave the company great lustre. On
the living room table a large enamelled glass plaque by Fontana
Arte, a splash of colour to match the paintwork.
Almost everywhere there are small examples of decorative 1900 art
that seem to underline the "horror vacui" of the owner who, despite
the stunning modernity of the whole, reveals an almost baroque
taste. Here, again, there is an exquisite example of Italian 20th
century art, a large glass leaf by Tyra Lundgren for Venini (ca. 1940).
Going down to the sleeping area and starting with the owner's
cabin, we find works that reflect the most secret tastes of the
owner and which the architects managed to track down and combine
with innate skill. These are two oils on canvas by Salvatore Fiume,
born in Comiso in Sicily in 1915, painter, architect, sculptor.
Fiume is an artist with a rare sensitivity, which transpires from
his representation of the so-called "islands", two of which,
painted with masterly skill, are hung on the yacht. Above the bed,
a De Chirico in decidedly dazzling colours depicts a landscape with
horse riders that goes well with the harmony of Fiume's "islands".
Over the desk are hung three fascinating etchings by Grechetto
depicting the heads of famous people.
The VIP cabin is resplendent with more audacious choices in the
shape of two large works by Giulio Turcato, who was born in Mantua
in 1912 and died in Rome in 1995.
The guest cabin amidships features works by Giuseppe Vignani that,
with their romantic interpretation of small things from everyday
life, such as games on the beach, musicians, street traders and so
on, gracefully recalls the "flying" figures of Marc Chagall.
Even in the sleeping area, in harmony with the rest of the yacht,
we find splendid objects from the 1900s, among which an
extraordinary glass by Venini designed by Carlo Scarpa.
Collecting these works of art was a particularly difficult task,
above all due to the desire to give some internal logic to all the
pieces. An attempt has been made to distribute the works as if in a
small art gallery with numerous references to the 20th Century, in
other words, an itinerary to be enjoyed from the entrance to living
area, from the sleeping area to the small service areas. Many
galleries offered to collaborate and mention must go to the
wonderful help received from Guidi&Shoen in Genoa for the paintings
and from CAL, again in Genoa, for the 20th Century decorative art.
Still in the Baglietto yard and still for the same owner, creation
of a 45-metre motor-yacht is being studied. For this boat the
architects are already thinking of a choice of works of art to be
directly commissioned to contemporary artists, as patrons used to
do in the past and in this way art will become the leit-motif for
the whole project.
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