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Spaces evoking nature embrace guests on board this refined 68-metre yacht by Abeking & Rasmussen. The Focus Yacht Design studio is responsible for exterior and interior design, handing everything down to the smallest detail by Paola Bertelli - ph. courtesy of Abeking & Rasmussen
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uilding a custom yacht requires a lot of patience, as the process takes several years to complete. But for me this wasn’t just a waiting period, I enjoyed following the creation of something spectacular as much as the anticipation of seeing the final result.” With these words MY Soaring’s owner took delivery of his yacht at the end of a fascinating 3.5-year process shaped by a constant research effort whose purpose was to create a unique superyacht. Soaring inspires a series of heady impressions. The yacht is designed by the Focus Yacht Design (FYD) studio, which developed the exteriors and interiors, while the Abeking and Rasmussen yard gave concrete form to this 68-metre craft – in other words, an entirely “made in Germany” collaboration. Built as a family yacht, although it’s available for charter, and not as an object to show off, it has contemporary lines with a strong personality and distinct identity, based firmly on tradition. The grey hull livery, white superstructure, sharply-defined windows that blend perfectly into overall concept and the vivid orange strip at water level are combined in a perfect equilibrium. A modern style reigns in the interiors, pure, functional and with a traditional layout. A limited number of materials have been chosen for the surfaces, creating relaxing, welcoming but never banal spaces – every room, lounge and bathroom reflects a distinct, original theme that draws inspiration from nature – elements, symbols and details evoke the worlds of animals and plants, as well as stars and the cosmos. Apart from a few pieces, the furnishings are by Rodiek, another German company that specialises in yacht interiors. Installations, sculptures and art objects provide interest and surprise. The spacious main deck salon, with a sumptuous round table seating twelve at its centre, provides access to the lounge, where the conversation and dining areas are separated by a screen with built-in TV. The screen is framed by small bronze plates that create an endless series of reflections. To the side are two large backlit panels with representations of two constellations. Incorporated into the panels are pieces of meteorite that are over 4.6 million years old. The guest accommodation area further forward is reached through a very original lobby – at the foot of the stairs stands a bronze sculpture by Claus Hartmann depicting two hippos wallowing in the water. The cabins are based on a variety of inspirational sources - Nautilus, Ginkgo, Turtle, Bamboo and Water Lily, themes that are also seen in the bedheads, FYD artwork that Taiping transformed into stunning tapestries, in the engravings in the Travertine or the glass of the showers in the bathrooms and the carpet decorations. The upper deck, whose layout is less traditional than on the rest of the yacht, is the owner’s domain, accessed by backlit stairs that seem to float in the air, and connect the four decks of the yacht. The 82-square metre suite extends towards the private aft deck and is dominated by a bedhead depicting eagles in flight – hence the yacht’s name. In the bows are a spectacular library/cinema with three white Flexform sofas and in the only unglazed wall an extraordinary bookcase with onyx wall and dimmable backlights. The outdoor bridge deck experience is enhanced by a 3-meter Jacuzzi aft, partially surrounded by a generous sunpad. Passing through the interior control station, guests reach a classic Portuguese deck, a sheltered walkway forward where they can enjoy the sea view. The area that springs the biggest surprises is probably the beach club on the lower deck. The swim platform dialogues with a sophisticated interior lounge with custom-made petrol blue sofas and a light-filled sculpture reaching the ceiling. This is flanked by gymnastic and yoga equipment, and the entire array is embraced by woodwork in light eucalyptus with silver strings. The gym area, with ballet barre and bar counter, provides access to the massage area and hammam, decorated with a geometric-pattern stone mosaic. All in all, 74 square metres of blissful waterlevel relaxation. www.abeking.com
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Soaring is a 68.20 metre, four-deck steel and aluminium yacht. It has a range of 4,200 miles a speed of 13 knots. Opening, the dining area of the main deck salon features an original chandelier, custom-made to a design based on the owner’s thumb print
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Windows form three sides of the upper deck library-media room (above), while the fourth is taken up by a bookcase with a backlit onyx wall. At the foot of main deck staircase (below, left) a sculpture by Claus Hartmann depicts two hippos wallowing in the water.
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The main deck lounge (above) covers 80 square metres. The conversation area is separated from the dining area by a screen clad in small bronze plates with built-in TV. On the lower deck, the beach club with gym-lounge (below, right), hammam and massage room (below, centre)
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Exterior Design Thomas Mühe, Managing Director Focus Yacht Design
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he owner’s brief specified a clearly recognisable yacht with a distinct identity. The only special requirements were length and interior volumes. At the same time, a traditional use of the yacht was anticipated. That framework meant we couldn’t opt for extreme proportions or create elegance through sleek lines. The yacht was clearly a voluminous ship with an individual owner’s deck at a length where a forwardfacing accommodation deck is not a common feature. Soaring was also not planned as a show-off piece, but as a family yacht. As with works of art, good design is generated by a storyline, tensions and disruptions that are woven into a harmonious whole. To break up the traditional way of arranging a yacht in different layers, we revived an idea I worked on during the late 1990s - treating the ship as a sculpture rather than a building, with a sweeping line. Following the example of stylistic techniques used on much smaller runabouts, we connected main deck, bow and swim platform in one generous arc. The main problem was maintaining this sweeping line without compromising the views from inside the yacht. We tried out hundreds of different lines to find the best balance between design intent
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and usability. The second way of streamlining the yacht’s appearance was to avoid individual windows and treat window spaces as surfaces with their own suspense and harmony. This can best be seen in the bow windows on the main deck, which create the impression of a single surface. Together with the colour scheme (including the striking orange boot top line) the profile features four different surfaces that interact with each other, as they would in a painting, creating suspense and harmony. The classic proportions and the volume, though, are traditional features of a family yacht. This approach convinced the owner to opt for a fine balance of elegance and functionality, which continued in the interiors.
Traditional lines for the hull and superstructure with accentuated bow streamlining. The main deck window bands are an original touch. Page to side, the image emphasises the spacious aft exterior areas. The sun deck hosts a hydromassage pool (below) with a diameter of three metres
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Interior Design Thomas Mühe, Focus Yacht Design
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s yacht designers we avoid starting a new project with a certain style, specific materials, colours, shapes or features. An interior reflects the personality of the people it’s made for, and just like people, interiors are more interesting if they have a story to tell. So when we designed Soaring our goal was not to put together a selection of attractive details, but to create a coherent and harmonious whole that was to be striking and imposing, but most of all a reflection and representation of the owner’s lifestyle and requirements. It is most probably this very personal approach that pleasantly surprised the owner and won him over from the very beginning. In this case we had the opportunity to get to know the owner personally, which enabled us to develop a tailormade interior focusing on subjects of interest to the him. There were almost no design changes, but always clear ideas and visions of what Soaring was to be, growing out of a very close collaboration. This gave rise to numerous unique, unconventional solutions like the back-lit onyx wall in the library and the main salon paneling with backlit artwork, showing our planetary system at moments of special importance to the client. Guests can enjoy the impressive artwork even if they don’t know exactly what the installation is about. All these elements and symbols either refer to the very small or the very large, but all evoke the natural world. They are depicted in an abstract way as pieces of art, but at the same time they act as integral parts of the interior. All the artworks were developed by Focus Yacht Design. It is features like these, the successful fusion of classical and contemporary yacht design, that give Soaring its appealing charisma. One of the many examples of this is in the deliberately restrained but expressive design language, like the contrast of very light and very dark veneers. The different spaces were carefully laid out to avoid creating a needlessly complex maze of cabin and accommodation decks. All the guest cabins are on the main deck, the owner’s deck is private and the aft lower deck is reserved for wellness, sport and swimming. The yacht was primarily designed as a family yacht but also serves charter purposes well.
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The interior styling is modern, pure and functional. A limited number of materials and colours has been chosen for the surfaces, creating relaxing, welcoming spaces. The guest cabins on the main deck draw inspiration from a variety of themes Nautilus, Ginkgo, Turtle, Bamboo and Water Lily. Top, left, a detail of one of the two backlit panels showing star systems that are of personal significance to the owner
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The Shipyard / Jörg Kleymann, Abeking & Rasmussen Senior Project Manager
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In the large main deck cockpit, a round table for 12 guests. In order to provide the owner and his guests with privacy at lunch or dinner, especially in busy marinas, a sideboard with a retractable frosted glass panel placed between the sofa and the dining table creates a visual barrier when desired
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oaring is a superbly built and strikingly good-looking 68 m motor yacht. Her owner was a constant presence during the design and construction stages, and Soaring was handed over in April 2020. He chose the interior and exterior designer after a contest where Thomas Mühe, managing director of the German Focus Yacht Design studio, dazzled him with a lively presentation of his yacht-to-be. One of the most important prerequisites for a high-quality design which is both visually inspiring and practical is a relationship of trust between the owner and his build team. Here, the role of the designer is crucial from the outset. The owner was attracted by the idea of German quality and our organisational methods, as well as a modern interior and elegant exterior design. While the exterior layout of Soaring generally displays elegant lines, she also incorporates optimal functionality with a modern appearance. It should be noted that, in contrast to our latest new builds, Soaring has a traditional “vintage” bow, but this enables the creation of covered working areas on the foredeck and enough space for the forward tender bay. This A&R build was a real team effort. Our engineers here at Abeking & Rasmussen carried out this amazing project in collaboration with Andrew Tree from Superyacht Technical Services, who acted as the owner´s technical representative. I believe that our solid boat-building techniques combined with the finest traditional workmanship and high-quality equipment are the keys to Soaring´s outstanding quality. In combination with cutting-edge eco-friendly solutions, notably the implementation of the IMO Tier III regulations, the entire build team has made it possible for the owner to enjoy maximum comfort and worry-free sailing for decades to come. With MY Soaring, Abeking & Rasmussen´s multi-faceted fleet is being joined by a classic gentleman‘s yacht. We want to say thanks to the owner, the designer, the building team and also the captain and his crew for their exceptional collaboration, especially during a challenging delivery process at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in spring 2020. Despite the circumstances, we delivered MY Soaring on time and the owner is now able to use his yacht as scheduled in the contract. And this yacht lacks absolutely nothing in terms of comfort and quality.