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[ CREATIVE MINDS: TOO DESIGN ]
“WE BELIEVE IN YOUR DREAMS”. AS WE DESIGN WE IMAGINE THE HAPPINESS A YACHT CAN GIVE
by Samuela Urbini, ph. courtesy by Too Design
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A yacht designer with a degree in architecture, Marco Casali (50) designs series and custom yachts from 8 to 100 metres in length. He enjoys working on green yachts, developing innovative solutions with a smaller environmental impact. His Too Design studio collaborates with as number of yards, including Isa Yachts, Columbus Yachts, Apreamare, Bavaria, Greenline and Silent Yachts
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[ CREATIVE MINDS ]
M
arco Casali’s designs spring from a set of values clearly communicated
Above, a sketch of the VisionE concept, hand-drawn like all Marco
in his heartfelt words, like a deep love for every kind of yacht, whether
Casali’s new projects. Opposite page, top, a rendering of the 56.7-metre
motor or sail, and for the sea in general. He hates to see the marine
yacht, unusual in that is laid out over two decks, not three. The hybrid
environment burdened by the pollution caused by the tons of plastic waste
propulsion designed by Francesco Rogantin is powered by batteries
that is gradually suffocating it. He also has deep belief in the power of sheer
charged using a solar panel array on the roof of the flydeck, which is
fun. Casali believes this must be a part of life and work for him and his twelve
revealed only when the panels are deployed. Bottom, the 150 square
collaborators at Too Design, a yacht design studio based in a 16th century
metre main deck saloon with no partitions
castle located in the countryside north of Rome. “We believe that creativity and its results can only emerge if you enjoy what you do”, he says. “We like to dream about a yacht and the happiness it can give. My best memories are linked to the sea – when I was small my parents bought a steel Akerboom
built in seven days. We specialise not only in designing yachts from 8 to 100
navette with a top speed of 8 knots. When we were at berth I made my dad
metres in length, we also explain how to construct them”. The client portfolio
show me all the boats, which I then drew. All this from six to ten years old”.
includes Apreamare, which has just presented its Maestro 88, Bavaria, Palumo
When he chose to study architecture at university he never intended to design
Yachts and Isa Yachts. But Casali and his studio have extensive experience,
yachts for a living, although he did design some between exams as a relaxation
especially in the design of green yachts. Ten Silent 80s and one Silent 120
exercise. As luck would have it his thesis supervisor was Gianni Zuccon,
are under construction, and the Columbus Anjelif, a hybrid, all-aluminium
and as soon as he graduated Zuccon asked Casali to join him. As a result
50-metre custom yacht, has just been launched. “It’s a very important yacht
he spent six and a half years working on Ferretti Group designs, and then in
for us. Its interiors are among the most sophisticated ever created in Italy in
2004 set up his own studio, which Ferretti chose to design new models for
this category”. After the experience gained with the solar-powered catamarans
Itama, a brand that the group had recently taken over. One result was the
for Silent Yachts and the hybrid monohulls by Greenline, Casali decided to
Itama Forty, the first in a series that eventually evolved into the Itama 75, a
develop something much more advanced. The result is the 56-metre VisionE,
yacht Casali is particularly proud of, and the Bavaria 42, perhaps the most
“Our vision of the craft of the future, for a new, cutting-edge, ecological,
commercially successful of his designs. “It’s a complex design, as it had to be
electric and environmentally-friendly yacht experience. We’ve rethought the
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motor yacht concept because the 499 Gross Ton usually has three decks
consumption, as does the pool, which uses sea water. The fly deck is only
plus a flydeck. We’ve increased the volumes on two decks, so there’s only
revealed when the complex system of sliding and lifting solar panels opens
the saloon on the main deck, but with an area of 150 square metres, like
up to double the generating surface. This visionary project has already
on a 70-metre yet. The longer, more stable hull goes faster and demands
attracted a great deal of interest – it’s based on free design that does not
less energy to move”. Unusually, the owner’s cabin is on the lower deck,
have to conform to stylistic elements associated with a brand, unlike projects
but the idea is that the owner of a green yacht wants contact with the water,
commissioned by a yard that has a distinct identity “In that case we take a
so all the cabins have a drop-down terrace, two for the owner’s cabin.
close look at the brand’s roots and reinterpret and innovate them through
Natural ventilation also cuts air conditioning costs that impact on on-board
new spatial solutions. The Apreamare Gozzo is an example”.
Top: left, the team from Marco Casali’s Too Design studio, located north of Rome; right, two images of the 56-metre VisionE owner’s cabin. It is situated on the lower deck, as are all the cabins. It is the only one with two drop-down terraces providing a direct contact with the sea and natural ventilation, which cuts consumption caused by using air conditioners. Above the versatile stern which has multiple functions
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