CRN 80M: A BRIEF COMMENT FROM THE DESIGNER
CRN 80M: A BRIEF COMMENT FROM THE DESIGNER
Chopi Chopi, CRN’s new 80 metre yacht, for which we designed the outer profile and interior layout, marks a milestone for my Studio: it is not only our biggest project so far but the beginning of a new phase in our work, in which our focus is shifted to larger yachts.
In linguistic terms, Chopi Chopi was designed on the basis of the conviction that there would always be room for a new “custom product” in the search to achieve a wise balance between history and innovation, that is, between the designer’s cultural convictions and the new opportunities offered by the owner’s specific requests.
This vessel, which I would describe as “timeless” because of its balanced vocabulary and volumes and attentive to all the connotations of the contemporary (transparency, flexibility, external and internal ratios, etc.…) once again reinforces my concept of product design as the result of a clear, correct fusion of linguistics with functional ergonomics.
Gianni Zuccon, designer of the Chopi Chopi 80 metre M/Y.
CRN 80M: THE DESIGNER’S THOUGHT
The CRN 80 metre marks a milestone for Zuccon International Project as the studio’s biggest yacht so far. The studio designed the yacht’s internal layout and defined its outer profile, and in both cases its attention was focused on the search for a design vocabulary that would maintain ties with the shipyard’s long history and tradition, underlining once again how important it is to innovate in this sector without losing sight of the goal of designing a product that represents both a synthesis and an evolution of the distinctive features that defined the brand in the past. The set-up of the crew area is very important when defining the compartmentalisation of a yacht of this size, as it must provide quarters for more than thirty people, in this case, on the lower deck in direct contact with the engine room and the garage. On this type of vessel design of utility spaces is very important, because there must be a work area for the crew on every deck, with links between all the decks which are completely separate from the connections used by guests on board the boat. In the same way, guests’ movements are resolved with a big lobby that has a staircase and an elevator connecting all the decks, starting with the lower deck, with an entrance directly in contact with the sea, up to the sundeck, providing the perfect link between the many activities inevitably available on board an 80 metre yacht. At the stern on the lower deck is a large area for guests with a spa, a gym and a beach club opening up to offer direct contact with the sea, underlining once again that whatever the size of the boat, it is important to create a product in which flexible construction and transformability can overcome the barriers that separate man from the context in which any boat is intended to be used: the sea.
This essential fact also inspires the set-up of the main deck, where physical and visual links between man and the sea are promoted not only by the big windows in the living area but by the presence of patios, both built-in and opening out from the guest suites, offering guests an opportunity to enjoy contact with the sea even when in their own cabins. The upper deck also responds to this desire for ‘openness’ in the design of the dining room, just forward of the lobby, with its big sliding glass doors windows; when they are open the indoor and outdoor spaces truly become one. Compared to the CRN tradition, the layout of the cockpit introduces a truly new theme, with a circular captain’s bridge like the ones typically found on big cruise ships, offering the captain and his crew a better view at sea. This choice underlines the fact that the goal of design must be conceiving the product as the result of a clear merger of linguistic considerations with ergonomic and functional factors.
The need to design space on the basis of the owner’s needs and desires led to a deck intended exclusively for the owner, including not only a suite measuring about 240 m2 but two outdoor areas, at the prow and stern, with a hydro-massage tub and a lounge area. Lastly, also connected with the same lobby starting on the lower deck, the sun deck revolves around the mass of the mast, the volume of which is integrated in the functions of the bar, swimming pool and sundeck. In linguistic terms, the 80 metre vessel is designed on the basis of the conviction that a new product must always be motivated by the attempt to achieve a wise balance between history and innovation, between a brand’s tradition and the new opportunities offered by technology; this vessel is the product of formal research in pursuit of a synthesis between “large-scale” volumetric characterisation, almost like the physiognomy of an urban skyline, and study of “small-scale” linguistic detail, the equivalent of painstaking moulding of an architectural detail.
Gianni Zuccon, designer of the Chopi Chopi 80 metre M/Y.
Zuccon International Project
Founded in Rome in 1972 by the architects Gianni Zuccon and his wife Paola Galeazzi, Zuccon International Project are highly skilled multidisciplinary architects and industrial designers. Active in various sectors, designs for offices, residential architecture. Especially in the yacht industry they are considered a leading international design firm. Today, they are working extensively with five of the eight brands of the Ferretti Group.
