design elements

10
Okt

Dream House in Madrid

categories House Tour     comments 16 comments

Traumhaus gefunden…

Beautiful, amazing…

photos: P. Zuloaga for Elle Decor Spain

14
Sep

Interview with Dickie Bannenberg

categories Designer, Interviews, Yachts     comments 21 comments

“It starts with one person’s imagination…”

Bannenberg & Rowell


Recently I had a cyber sit down with Dickie Bannenberg – managing director of Bannenberg & Rowell – the superyacht design company with a magnificent portfolio of more than 200 mega yachts founded by his father Jon in the beginning of the 60’s. “Before Bannenberg, yacht design did not really exist as a distinct occupation. Naval architects designed what they hoped were efficient and good-looking hulls and left the shipyard to complete the interior.” Do you hear the waves and smell the sea water coming from your desktop? Enjoy!


How did you first get in touch with yacht design?

Growing up with my father meant that I was aware of yachts and the world of design from a very early age. My parents would take me to shipyards, launches and sometimes on board a friend’s yacht. My dad would often work in his study at home so I would see him at his drawing board. I only actually joined my father’s firm in the late 1980s.

You attended the best “yacht design school” in the world – The Jon Bannenberg school. How had your father Jon influenced you?

My father’s enthusiasm and drive was very powerful. I can’t pretend to be just like him (no one will ever be) but I hope I have some of his qualities. He never let anyone forget that no one actually needs a yacht and that we are all only in business thanks to people making these huge investments. So the process of building a yacht has got to be not only pain-free but something hugely exciting for the yacht owner. My dad got on with everyone. I hope I am the same in that respect.

How does a world-leading designer go about creating the marvels we see on the water?

Well, we take a brief from the client and go from there. Sometimes that brief is clear and detailed. Sometimes there’s hardly anything to go on. Either way, you’ve got to create an identity from which to build on.

What are the biggest challenges in yacht interior design?

I think they are related to your earlier question: it still amazes me the number of times we have someone – client, broker, shipyard – talk about modern classic, or classic modern. What does this mean? It’s a incredibly elastic definition of style which is actually useless. But it is often trotted out and the hard bit is not only to try and ascertain what is actually meant, but also to make sure that it doesn’t also mean some kind of ultra-safe middle ground where there are no risks and no excitement. All other challenges – technical, regulatory and budgetary can be overcome, some with more pain and stress than others!

The SuperYacht World chose 9 Bannenberg yachts including the outright winner in the “50 Most Beautiful Yachts Ever”. What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?

The SuperYacht world list was in relation to exteriors so all are, by definition, my Dad’s. I still think Carinthia VI (now The One) was fantastically ground-breaking. I hesitate to use the word iconic now as it has become rather overused. When she appeared, it was with the same sense of shock and awe as perhaps Rising Sun did before my father died. She was truly radical yet now is regarded with great affection as a subtle and elegant yacht. But I think the sheer variety of designs, all recognisably off the Bannenberg drawing board, were his greatest achievement.

What do you love to do when you are not designing?

I have my wonderful wife and two kids aged 18 and 15. So life revolves around them. Remaining time is split between rowing for my club (Tideway Scullers School) in all types of boat and trying to improve my saxophone playing.

What are your favorite books?

I have a small stack of books in various stages of completion. I need a bit more discipline. Something on the History of the British Empire, a book about the Vietnam war, and half-way through a biography of Herbert von Karajan.

What would the yacht you would design for yourself looks like?

I wouldn’t want anything big! I thought the 39m Feadship SL Kathleen Anne gave you everything you could possible want in terms of space. And I would want anti-bling. Anti-glitz. Set up for living in shorts and bare feet.

What are the most important yacht design elements?

Excitement, cohesion, elegance, identity, practicality.

photos: Bannenberg & Rowell Design

6
Sep

Beautiful Home in Mallorca

categories House Tour, Houses, Pools     comments 13 comments

Ein Blick nach Mallorca in dieses wundervolle Haus. Design: Miquel Angel Lacomba & Jaume Cortes.

A dose of heaven in Majorca designed by Miquel Angel Lacomba & Jaume Cortes.

photos: nuevo estilo

10
Aug

Made in Madrid

categories House Tour     comments 14 comments

Die Wohnung der spanischen Architektin Teresa Sapey.

The home of the Spanish architect Teresa Sapey.

photos: P. Zuloaga for Elle Spain

29
Jul

Summer House in Formentera

categories House Tour, Houses     comments 30 comments

Ein Sommerhaus auf Formentera – die kleinste Insel der Balearen, toll fotografiert von Jordi Canosa.

A summer house in Formentera, one of the Balearic islands in the Mediterranean sea, beautifully photographed by Jordi Canosa.

photos: Jordi Canosa via nicety

1
Jul

Lovely Home in Lisbon

categories House Tour     comments 28 comments

Ein herrliches kleines Haus in Lissabon. Interior Design: Mónica Penaguiao. Schönes Wochenende!

Lovely home in Lisbon. Interior Design: Mónica Penaguiao. Happy weekend!

photos: nuevo estilo

23
Jun

House in South Africa

categories House Tour, Houses     comments 39 comments

Dieses Haus in Südafrika zieht meine Augen magisch an.

This lovely home in South Africa is catching my eye today.

photos: Greg Cox-Hogl for klikk

16
Jun

Loft in La Coruña

categories House Tour     comments 7 comments

Eine Loftwohnung in La Coruña – klein, aber echt schön eingerichtet. Interior design: Arianna Barral und Joaquín Vázquez

Lovely home: a small loft in La Coruña, Spain. Interior design: Arianna Barral and Joaquín Vázquez

photos: mi casa revista

4
Jun

Leaf House in Brazil

categories Architecture, Houses     comments 15 comments

Dieses Strandhaus liegt südlich von Rio de Janeiro. Inspiriation für das Projekt war die Architektur der Indianer. Design: Mareines + Patalano Arquitetura

Inspired by Brazil’s Indian architecture, this beautiful beach house is located south of Rio de Janeiro. Design: Mareines + Patalano Arquitetura

Leaf House in Brazil by Mareines + Patalano Arquitetura via homedsgn

Leaf House in Brazil by Mareines + Patalano Arquitetura via homedsgn

Leaf House in Brazil by Mareines + Patalano Arquitetura via homedsgn

22
Mai

All the moments in between

categories Inspiration, quotes     comments 19 comments

“There was a period in my life when I did not have a clue about who or what I wanted to be. I was completely disconnected from whatever talents I might have had. I was fortune enough to meet Bob Patino, an interior designer who become a mentor to me. Very quickly, I found a direction and a career.

I immersed myself in work, and the years flew by. I was continually looking for the next job, the next challenge. The one constant in my schedule was an annual trip. Every December I visited some exotic destination. This was adventure travel, and it usually did not involve luxury hotels or pampering. The point was to get closer to another culture.

One year I was in the Himalayas, hiking through a rhododendron forest…The views were incredible, but the mountain path was more suited to goats than to people…I was looking at the steep incline coming up and thinking about how I hate going uphill. When was it going to be lunchtime?…

All of a sudden a light bulb went off in my head. The clouds just parted, the sun came out, and I can feel the warmth on my skin. Why don’t I enjoy it, instead of worrying about what’s up ahead?

The future will always be just out of reach. You’ll get there eventually…But in the meantime, don’t miss the here and now. Live in the moment. That’s what’s important. What I am doing today? How can I use my energies?

I don’t pretend to have absorbed this message completely, but I’m trying. There is always a before and an after; but the point is to be present and aware for all the moments in between.”

Vicente Wolf, “Lifting the Curtain on Design

Pangong Tso Lake in the Himalayas via my pinterest

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