Luminosity: a beacon of design
Words by Julia Zaltzman
Body/…
You could be forgiven for not knowing who Zaniz is. Her prolific design portfolio spans more than two decades and arcs across residential architecture, commercial interiors, theatre and even furniture. And yet the work of a woman, whose success has propelled her into the dizzy heights of first name only basis among those in the know, remains elusive in the public domain. But it’s for good reason, for when your clients value discretion and confidentiality over almost anything else, you’d be wise to not go and tell it to the world.
And then came 108m superyacht Luminosity. One of the most prominent yacht launches of 2020, the Benetti-built hybrid boat breaks away from conventional yacht design. Flanked either side by a sprawling bank of glass that fills the yacht with natural light, it boasts an interior designed by none other than Zaniz.
“I’ve only just started my Instagram page because up until now nobody has allowed me to show anything about any project,” says the British-born, Swiss-educated designer. “It’s been like that for pretty much my whole life, except for Donald Trump who allowed me to show stuff, but I chose not to. When Luminosity came along it was the first time I've been able to really say what I want to say about design and the whole process.”
Finding her interview wings with ease, Zaniz speaks animatedly about the “metaphors” that she looks for within each project. With Luminosity, whose owner is an experienced serial builder and long-standing client, her preliminary research was anchored by four main drivers – light, connectivity to the sea, a timeless classic and a timeline of “art periods from his lifetime”; a social economic history that would underpin the design language throughout.
“These things gave me a foundation of the story I wanted to tell in each of the spaces,” Zaniz explains. “I need a much deeper meaning in my head before I can translate what I'm trying to say on any project. And for me, every detail tells some sort of story and I want it to hold memory. I don't care if the client ever knows what my inspiration was. That's not important. What's important is that I have a story that I can hold onto as I create and keep referencing back to.”
Zaniz is playful with her designs, revelling in hidden details that may never be discovered. She draws pleasure from their very existence, such as 12cm hexagons on the floor of Luminosity’s main technical corridors that feature zodiac signs. “You'd have to look really hard to find them, but it links back to my historical research of an old church that had zodiac signs embedded into hexagons,” she says.
Her relentless pursuit of detail is evident in every corner, in every room. One of Luminosity’s defining features is the bank of oversized glass windows that run 800-square-metres along the main deck. Faced with large structural mullions that obscure her intended connectivity to water, Zaniz opted to engrave each mullion with an excerpt from Moby Dick, so that “as you walk around the entrance hall and main salon one can read this timeless classic of the sea”.
Similarly with the colour palette, textures and soft furnishings, each one has been selected to reflect the sky and the ocean, both cloudy days and sunrise horizons. And, of course, there’s the owner’s brief. Alongside a wow factor, the yacht needed to work for his multigenerational family, including disabled access and flexible spaces that enable long periods spent together on board. To realise all of this, says Zaniz, Luminosity was designed from the inside out.
One such interior requirement that had the biggest impact on exterior design was the need to have a three-meter minimum ceiling height on the main deck. Equally, crew access needed to work in such a way to allow them to discreetly service areas without having to disturb guests. Driven by a need for space, volume and privacy, the extensive beach club with a plunge pool, swimming pool (with rising dance floor) and a steam room with side doors that open up at sea level epitomises the brief. Its fingerprint security ensures large parties can be held on board with guests unable to access the rest of the yacht unless invited.
Fluid and dynamic, the design comes to the fore in a few key areas. Like the sea creature dropdown chandelier made from 700 hand blown crystal bulbs in an homage to Thomas Edison. Or the glass stairwell with its cathedral-like stream of light and the central glass box elevator with its illuminated floor, clear acrylic handrails and seamless glass ceiling that ascends five decks, backed by a live digital forest wall. Interactive display walls with embedded sensors react to movement, so that butterflies fly away (or fireflies at night) as the lift ascends, and the trees sway as guests walk past.
“There are certain psychological things that you can do to make you feel cooler when in a hot climate. One is the physical movement around you, so I wanted branches and leaves to slowly move as though a breeze is coming through,” she says. “I wanted the sensation of floating through the forest to the sky while looking to the sea.”
For Zaniz, the psychology of an interior space is critical to the success of any design. But a sophisticated playfulness is where the sense of theatre, fun and magic can be found. And it’s represented in abundance on board Luminosity.
