A 47m flagship is the result of the Master thesis of three talented young designers that are developing the naval platform of a 45m from Floating Life’s K-Series.
The outcome of this project has already impressed a slew of potential owners with its innovative styling features and 4.0 design methodology. Her name K47 Taxila and responsible for it are Federica Fino, Alberto Frulla and Francesco Viola, who make up the Studio Satura team and epitomise the new generation of digital native yacht designers. When it came to their graduate thesis for the interfaculty Master’s in Naval and Nautical Design offered by the University of Genoa and the Politecnico di Milano, the trio approachedyacht charter, management and design expert Andrea Pezzini about developing one of the naval platforms he had created.
The focal point of the thesis is theK47 Taxila, a 47m yacht with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure that can accommodate up to 12 passengers and 11 crew. The solutions introduced in terms of spatial arrangements, flows and construction choices and of course aimed at facilitating and improving the crew’s work flow were also incorporated. In line with current market trends, K47 Taxilahas a classic go-anywhere explorer yacht style albeit with sportier lines. Her volumes are concentrated forward and thus push her geometry forward too, while a broadened bow section adds a sense of imposing power and movement to the overall design by offering a new take on the forms themselves. The exteriors were crafted to heighten guests’ sense of contact with the marine environment. In fact, the decks are designed so that all visual barriers have been eliminated. Theflush aft deckin particular has the feel of a sea platform. One of the onboard pools has a transparent bottomwhich draws sunlight aplenty into the beach club created when two large hatches in the garage open out. Guests have a fully-equipped gym and a spa in this area too.
The interior styling is contemporary with a colour and textural palette that emphasises muted tones to avoid harsh contrasts. The upper deck is home to the only indoor saloon aboard. This is a completely new space in terms of its geometry, architecture, design and materials that is cosy and convivial with great views yet providing privacy. The interior design also took into consideration factors such as regular maintenance to guarantee a superb service and facilitate the cleaning and upkeep a craft welcoming large numbers of guests during a single season, requires. To reflect yacht’s working life span, the furnishings and panelling are also designed to be easily replaceable and to adapt effortlessly to any changes introduced in future refits.
The three young designers had a single goal with their thesis: to push the concepts linked to a charter market-focused craftto new extremes whilst enhancing the on board luxury yacht experience to the utmost.“Our choice to work with Floating Life was influenced by the Swiss company’s impressive expertise in the charter business and various other areas of yachting (management, finance, logistics and design),” the three designers declared. “We could not have found a better guide for our project than Andrea Pezzini.”
We should mention though that K47 Taxila was developed on the naval platform of the 45m from the K-Series which itself was a joint effort between by Andrea Pezzini of Floating Life and Mauro Sculli of Studio Sculli.
Studio Satura developed the exterior styling and the interior fit-out under the supervision of Andrea Pezzini. The latter provided comments, and technical and management input to help bring to fruition a project that has produced the new flagship of Floating Life’s K-Series.
“The result is superb. We have already shown it to potential owners who found it very interesting indeed,” declared Pezzini of the experience. “The three designers have a very fresh yet sophisticatedtouch. It feels very positive to be working with young minds: you see solutions from a whole new perspective. I found working with them very interesting. I even put them in contact with my children so they could keep collaborating. Together they represent the future of both yacht design and Floating Life”.
The Satura Studio team take a high-tech digital native approach to their projects: “We do digital sketches so that we can manipulate them better and that simplifies the next phases (2D, 3D, renderings). We are also always on the lookout for innovative ways of presenting our projects to clients and involving them in the design experience. We have already used virtual reality and we are developing interactive visualisation methods too.”
