Designer Enrico Gobbi has spoken to Boat International about his work on Rossinavi’s 48m motor yacht Vellmari, whose launch we attended earlier this month.
The most significant feature of Vellmari is her flexible upper saloon; it contains the wheelhouse forward, while amidships a bar and sofas (with drop-down cinema screen) are covered by a slide-back hard top and surrounded four large retractable windows, and a spa pool aft is encircled by sliding windows. When all the movable parts are in ‘outdoor’ mode it is essentially an exterior space, merging seamlessly with the aft deck and huge foredeck – with a 12-person dining table and sunpads.
‘For the owners this is the informal space where they play poker, have relaxed dinners,’ says Gobbi, who designed the yacht inside and out, as well as the owner’s previous two yachts. ‘They like coloured Murano glass from Venice so there will be a big Murano wave sculpture in blue separating the wheelhouse and the lounge. All the decoration of the upper saloon will be white and blue with marine items, like coral.’
Elsewhere the all-aluminium trideck has a classic layout with some twists – in particular the lower deck VIP, which is the near-equal of the full-beam (8.9m) main deck master in both size and grandeur, and the full-height gill-like windows in the master cabin that give the line its name (Ketos means ‘large fish’ in ancient Greek).
Aside from the upper saloon, the interior décor features cherry wood and back-lit onyx – a pairing the owner favours in all his yachts – as well as cream leather panelling, cream carpets and recessed deckhead panels with star-like fibre optics. Of particular note is the Swarovski chandelier, designed by the crystal specialist in collaboration with Gobbi, which will hang in the stairwell. The lighter elements were suggested by Gobbi to help the interior meld with the modern exterior styling.
‘One of the main requests was a sporty look, but without losing space in the interior,’ says Gobbi. ‘I therefore wanted to create a big hull in proportion to the superstructure – this gives the effect of a sporty boat. So we have one very clean, important line, that gives this sleekness and this very high hull in front.’
With two 2,000hp MTU engines the yacht is expected to have a cruising speed of 16 knots. She will accommodate eight guests in four cabins and seven crew members (including captain) in five cabins.