The horizon as a frontier.
To be faced and crossed with the desire to explore and the strength of research. The excitement that pushes to face still unknown territories and the awareness of reason to tackle possible trajectories.
«Orizzonti» is also the title of the 7th Italian Design Conference organized on November 21st 2023 by Yacht Design in collaboration with Politecnico di Milano Campus Bovisa headquarter of a master’s degree in Yacht Design.
The 2023 edition, moderated by director Antonio Vettese and professor Andrea Ratti, was a broad reflection on design in relation to boating and where the boundaries between the quality of living and the imagination of architects in turn stimulated by boatbuilding are explored. And if the boat can be considered the oldest means of transportation, sea represents one of the most stimulating fields of research.
Not surprisingly, this was the introductory speech by Max Sirena that opened the conference. The chief operating officer of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli explained how some of the decision-making processes that are taken in the design of an America’s Cup campaign are similar to those for the construction of a large cruising boat. Starting with the contribution that students can make to innovation: young people have ideas but a lack the experience that can sometimes be a limitation for a broader vision of a solution.
Later, two working sessions at the conference occurred: the first was dedicated to the nautical industry with speeches by Stefano De Vivo, Ferretti Group, and Vanni Galgani, Nautor Swan. The former emphasized the importance of technical study and experimentation in a group in which brands linked to innovation, such as Wally, and others more tied to tradition, such as Riva, coexist. On the strength of evolution insisted Galgani who assured that form must always follow function. Swan is an example of style and does not make Pindaric flights.
The second session was devoted to actual design. With Andrea Vallicelli, a university professor who first activated degree courses related to boats that not yet 30 years old designed Azzurra, Ivana Porfiri, a designer who also dedicated herself to boats, and Enrico Lumini, Hot Lab, discussed what are the boundaries between emotion and rationality in boating. «Without emotion, the goods lose meaning», says Porfiri. Equally important is the relationship between faculty and students. «Design is not taught; that would be a contradiction in terms. The role of the lecturer is to guide learning to design», Vallicelli explains.
Because even the relationship between teacher and student cannot ignore the creativity of a project and thus the emotional dimension of design.
