Designers seek inspiration in all kinds of places. Still it’s rare to find one hanging off the side of a sailboat flying through the ocean near Palma de Mallorca, Spain, for The Superyacht Cup. “It was heart pounding,” says Ken Fulk, who’d joined the boat’s crew “mainly as ballast” after being hired to design his clients’ new sister yacht, the Halekai. “I wanted to understand the paces these boats are put through,” he says. “The wind and speed and ocean are intoxicating.”
He came away with powerful insight: “A yacht like this is a fiercely athletic machine that also has to be able to offer elegant, Gatsby-like entertaining. All the craftsmanship is driven by purpose.” Fulk, known for layered, theatrical interiors and events (his 2022 book with Assouline is titled The Movie in My Mind), found himself studying every detail from multiple angles. He considered how a bookcase could double as an escape ladder, for example, and oversaw the design of each martini glass as well as where and how it could be stowed without breaking.
Step Aboard This Luxury Yacht
Fulk also did a deep dive into indigenous Hawaiian design. The husband attended high school in Hawaii, where he fell in love with the place and people, and wanted to honor the islands’ culture and traditions. Fulk’s team developed a book of symbols to guide design details, from the carvings in the main cabin door to the embossing on the leather upholstery trim. “Patterns and fabrics act as storytelling devices,” says Fulk.
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The project took Fulk from the bustling shipyards of the Netherlands and England to the tranquil lagoons of Tahiti, netting him a renewed appreciation for creative constraints. “Doing the Halekai made me a smarter, more efficient designer,” he says. On a racing yacht—even one that doubles as a pleasure boat—there’s no room for gratuitous gestures. So what became of his taste for lavish spectacle? At sea, he says, the wind and waves provide more than enough drama. On board luxury serves serenity.
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Featured in our November/December 2022 issue. Interior Design by Ken Fulk; Architecture by Hoek Design; Photography by Angie Silvy; Written by Celia Barbour.
