Designed and engineered from the outset as a diesel-electric hybrid, Gelliceaux is the first unit in Southern Wind’s SW108 Smart Custom series with naval architecture by Farr Yacht Design and exterior and interior design by Nauta. (All our posts on Nauta Design here)
Nauta Design co-founder Massimo Gino sheds light on Gelliceaux design.
“From a design point of view Gelliceaux is the latest in the ‘GT’ series of Southern Wind bluewater sailing yachts that started the SW105 Taniwha and then the SW96 Nyumba. During this creative evolution the exterior lines have been tailored to become more sporty and dynamic with the Owner’s involvment. Gelliceaux’sdeckhouse is clad in teak with a huge central skylight and the teak sidedecks aft morph into ‘floating’ bench seats that also provide a handy platform for winches. It’s a feature we’re very proud of that has been ‘borrowed’ by other designers” observes Massimo Gino.
Another defining exterior detail is the Z-shaped composite coaming of the deckhouse that looks like a stylized lightning bolt. It lends the yacht a low-rise, agile look when viewed in profile.
Owners involved in every aspect of design
“The owners were closely involved in the whole design process: he mostly for the technical specifications and deck layout, and she more for the interior design. What really won them over was when they saw our section render of the split-level saloon. We were on the same page in terms of taste, but we were given free rein to come up with styling proposals and that made the creative process all the more rewarding,” continues Gino.
“The words ‘calming’ and ‘Mediterranean fresh’ cropped up a lot in our discussions and I think you can see that in the natural colour palette, fabric-lined walls, and contrasting light and dark veneers in Alpi wood composite. Everything is very easy on the eye and the overall ambience is classy but cool, understated but sophisticated, stylish but warm.”
Nauta Design and the interpretation of freestanding
Nauta Design proposed to have the fixed furniture to appear more as freestanding, and not built-in, so if you look closely the furniture units don’t run right up to the bulkheads and looks separated from walls – which makes for a cozier feeling, normally typical of a open space interior design. Nauta designed the sofa seating in the airy, split-level saloon to be big and comfy like you find in today’s residential design, and virtually the only items that are not bespoke are the chairs around the 8-person dining table.
There are no stainless steel accents in the yacht’s interiors. Instead all the bathroom fittings, handrails and other accessories are in satin-finished black, which not only looks very contemporary also – last but not least – makes cleaning easier for the crew.
Cutting-edge lighting design
A lot of attention was devoted to the lighting design, not least because the high-quality hardware is supplied by a top-end brand that needed to be to adapted for use onboard to create lighting that is not only practical and atmospheric but also increases the sense of space.
The headboards in the cabins, for example, are made of upholstered panels arranged in ‘relief’ to create different shadows for a sense of depth. Various mock-ups were made with the lighting spaced closer or further away to get these shadows just right.
Since her delivery in October 2024, the yacht already sailed almost 12.000. After a 7500 miles Maiden Voyage from Cape Town to Lanzarote, the owners, confident in their yacht bluewater capability, decided to Cross the Atlantic heading for the Caribbean in time for the winter season. An undisputed test for the boat.
