The French perspective
With only days to go before the start of SuperyachtDESIGN Week, we headed to one of the style capitals of the world to visit French design studios Alberto Pinto, Christian Liaigre and Remi Tessier...…
Remi Tessier (image by Andrew Johansson)
FRANCE, Paris. With only days to go before the start of SuperyachtDESIGN Week, we headed to one of the style capitals of the world to visit French design studios Alberto Pinto, Christian Liaigre and Remi Tessier to discuss new projects and how the design of superyachts should evolve.
First on the SYD tour was a visit to Alberto Pinto, where we sat down with chairman of Alberto Pinto, Linda Pinto who had recently returned from Monaco following the delivery of a project. “One of the greatest pleasures for me is to see a client’s reaction to the work we have done,” explained Pinto. “Unfortunately we don’t often get to deal with the client directly and confidentiality agreements often prevents us from showing the work we’ve done.”
During our meeting Pinto revealed that the studio is working on a new book to present the many projects it has delivered across the superyacht, residential and aeronautical sectors. At the time of our visit, the studio had just completed work on a new 120m-plus motoryacht and the interior of an Airbus 747-800, just one of 30 aircraft projects to have been completed over the past 15 years.
Being able to witness the first reactions to a design is something that Remi Tessier also enjoys and while work continues on a 32.5m sailing yacht due for delivery to her European owner in 2017, and a 55m motoryacht due to be completed in the same year for an American client, the team of 15 staff are working hard to deliver a number of land-based projects in Palma, London, Doha, Miami and Switzerland.
The Frenchman is also working on a 150m-plus design for a client with a modern and sleek exterior. This project, like most by the Frenchman, offers a simple yet elegant aesthetic. “I think there is a lot of beauty in the simplicity of a design,” said Remi when discussing his approach to exterior design. “It is not ideal when having to work on an interior when you don’t have control over the size and position of windows, which impact on the exterior design. As it is important to provide the right view and lighting.”
Guillaume Rolland
Creating an interior that engages all the senses is one of the key aims for Guillaume Rolland, who heads the yacht division of Christian Liaigre. At the time of our visit, Rolland was preparing to depart for The Netherlands-based Amels, where 55m Amels 180 is at the finishing stages of construction and due for delivery on 1 July 2015. In addition to this, the studio — comprised of 20 members of staff — is working on the interior for a 72m motoryacht in build at Abeking & Rasmussen and due for delivery in April 2016.
“Having sailed from a young age, I would like to see more sporty looking yachts with lower deck heights and smaller cabins, as most of your time is spent on deck or in communal areas,” explained Rolland when asked what he would like to see in the coming five years. “It is frustrating when I see a beautiful looking interior that is not practical. Our design work is governed by basic principals and if something doesn’t make sense, we won’t do it.”
Related Links:
Alberto Pinto Interior Design
Christian Liaigre
Remi Tessier
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