Stately Lady

It’s not just Lady Christine’s eye-catching sleek exterior lines that mark out this stunning 68 metre superyacht as being dramatically different.

Inside, six luxurious decks boast a wealth of unique design and exceptional craftsmanship that combine unique Art Deco opulence with everyday practicality.

Feadship, a cooperation between three of the most renowned names in yachting history with combined roots dating back to 1849 – Koninklijke De Vries Scheepsbouw, Royal Van Lent Shipyard and De Voogt Naval Architects – takes pride in producing pure custom superyachts that meet and exceed the exacting demands of its clients.

This renowned dedication to excellence soared to new heights during design and construction of Lady Christine, built to a design by De Voogt Naval Architects, with ultra-close collaboration between builder, owner and interior designer.

The painstaking attention to detail in this partnership was perhaps illustrated most vividly when the owner, his wife and the interior designer spent four days in the fabric department of Harrod’s in London selecting materials.

Lady Christine’s striking exterior profile and interior layout is the result of a splitlevel concept devised by the owner during the design process, when the wheelhouse was moved down a level from its traditional Bridge Deck location, and the forward part of the deck raised to create an entire Owner’s Deck complete with Observation Lounge above the wheelhouse.

With the forward sections of the three decks below also raised, Lady Christine has, in essence, six decks containing elaborate interiors with extraordinary levels of fine detailing and finish throughout.

And these exceptionally splendid interiors represent a remarkable superyacht debut by the UK’s Rodney Black Design Studios.

With the exception of the Guest Suites and original design for the Cinema - designed by Jean Guy Vergès - the entire interior comes from Rodney Black, who teamed up with Feadship’s joinery department and a formidable team of specialists for the furniture, engraved glass, carpets and curtains.

The result is a rich fusion of materials, fabrics, woods, glass, precious metals and marbles that offers endless surprises at each and every turn.

"We started the design by thinking of an early rarefied form of Art Deco based on the 1925 exhibition in Paris, explains Rodney Black. This pure modernist expression featured a pared-down form of classicism using the most beautiful materials and shapes imaginable at the time.

The style for Lady Christine takes this as her foundation, and while there are clear flashbacks of Art Deco throughout, nothing has been copied - this is a unique design in its own right", says Black.

A keynote feature is the liberal use of marquetry and inlay work throughout the vessel.

Marquetry - the art and craft of covering a structural frame with small pieces of veneer to form decorative patterns, designs or pictures – is most spectacularly on view in the entrance to the Main Deck and Owner’s Deck.

Here, three large marquetry panels, each up to 1.90 metres wide, gently adorn the curved walls and depict iconic architectural structures such as the Taj Mahal, Empire State building and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Created by Welsh company Aryma, they feature woods such as maple, birch, cherry, and maple with specialised staining adding to the rich palette of colours.

"Looking at these panels, it’s hard to realise that such skilfully made inlaid woodwork is possible today - but it is, and it rivals the quality of marquetry from any age",  says Black.

A unifying feature throughout the interiors, found in various doors, cabinets, tables and chairs, is a motif drawn by Rodney Black’s team, whose initial inspiration came from Art Deco designer Edgar Brandt and a fire screen he created in 1925.

Taking this as the basic idea, the motif was developed with a simple theme composed of hundreds of parts, like a crystallised pyrotechnic display streaming out from a geometric base in parabolic shapes. 

Another virtually ever-present aspect of the interior is the intriguing synthesis of four woods: Macassar Ebony, Maple, Cherry and an exotic Amboyna burr.

"The way the craftsmen at Feadship managed to consistently craft these timbers to our most demanding designs and shapes has been quite remarkable",  says Black.

With such stately interiors, it’s appropriate that Lady Christine takes a leisurely approach to her sailing speed.

She’s powered by 12 cylinder MTUs, not the 16 cylinder engines usually found on a yacht of this size - reflecting the fact that the owners are never in a hurry and find a graceful top speed of 15.5 knots suitably sufficient.

Source: feadship.nl