Milan may have been overflowing with crisp design, stylish designers, and creative installations during Milano Design Week recently. But I’m pretty sure no other installation got more attention, or was harder to pull off than what Azimut Yachts achieved when they moored a 57-foot-long Azimut Seadeck 6 in the swimming pool of the Bagni Misteriosi.
The immersive installation was curated by AMDL CIRCLE and Michele De Lucchi that began as journey within the Bagni Misteriosi del Teatro Franco Parenti and culminated on the Azimut yacht moored in the shadow of a large moon. The goal was to invite visitors to rediscover the gentle relationship between man and nature as well as to testify to the fact that that a more sustainable future is now at Azimut.
“The purpose of this installation was to involve visitors in the theater of life and arouse their imagination,” says Michele De Lucchi, Founder of AMDL CIRCLE. “It is only with our imagination that we can see a brighter future on the horizon, much more harmonious than today’s present.”
Once through the historic entrance of the Palazzina dei Bagni Misteriosi, visitors were welcomed by a suspended atmosphere, in which the elements of the rooms dialogue with the installations to evoke the wonder of the natural world.
Images, sounds and scents evoked a dreamlike sea that was discovered through the labyrinth of doors of the old changing rooms at the beginning. Large sculptures, shells made with the innovative materials introduced by Azimut – discarded and regenerated fishing nets, recycled plastic (PET) and carbon – stand out like theatrical wings in the second room while, continuing the game of theatrical make-believe, the visitor climbed aboard the Seadeck 6 in a space where furnishings and materials are used to recreate the internal environment of the vessel, designed by Matteo Thun & Antonio Rodriguez.
The route culminated outside, offering a view from a terrace suspended over the water of a landscape in which Seadeck 6 is moored, the embodiment of the route traced by Azimut to reduce CO2 emissions and energy consumption.
In fact, according to Azimut, the yacht offers a reduction in emissions of up to 40% in an average year of use. Mirrored shingles in shiny galvanized steel form a large disk inspired by the moon, whose play of reflections emphasizes the dynamic effect of the pattern of light, evoking the lunar glow.
“The difference can and must be made here and now,” explained Giovanna Vitelli, Chair of Azimut|Benetti Group. “Not with distant promises of a world to come or with a superficial approach to the topic of environmental sustainability. The boat in the swimming pool of the Bagni Misteriosi is the emblem of our commitment: concrete, measurable and always present.”
And maybe best of all. It was cool. Because let’s face it, change for the better is much easier to pull off when the alternative is cooler than what’s gone before.
Stay tuned.