Yacht Builders Are Investing in the Art World. Here’s Why.

Several weeks ago, during the first Venice Climate Week, Sanlorenzo Arts opened its Casa Sanlorenzo. The Italian yacht builder calls it a “cultural and artistic lab that transcends time, both culturally and architecturally.” The description is a bit over the top, but what seems even more puzzling is that the restoration was financed by an industrial shipyard. The multi-year exercise of turning a 1940s, 11,000-square-foot mansion into a modern arts center in Venice seems more aligned with a billionaire’s personal dream than a publicly traded superyacht builder.

“Casa Sanlorenzo becomes a place where one enters to stop, reflect and share. A space of research, where art does not simply adorn, but rather interrogates,” said Massimo Perotti, executive chairman of Sanlorenzo, in a statement. “In an increasingly virtual world, we wanted to invest in presence, in meaningful encounters, and in shared experiences. And Venice is the perfect place for this project.”

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Piero Lissoni’s architectural restoration is considered part of the artwork. It blends modern elements like the centerpiece glass-and-steel staircase, white walls for hanging art, with traditional Palladian and Portoro floors and woodwork. The center will display Sanlorenzo’s contemporary art collection but also promote “the active participation of the arts community and the public.”

Other Italian yacht builders have invested in the arts. In 2019, Azimut placed a yacht in the center of New York’s Time Square as part of an installation. The Ferretti Group’s Riva brand has been the inspiration for high-end lounges and yacht clubs. The Italian Sea Group’s headquarters are adorned with sculpture and paintings.

But Sanlorenzo’s commitment to the arts, which started with an installation at Art Basel, has outstripped its competitors. That original installation grew into a multi-year sponsorship of the different Art Basel events around the world, as well as displays and partnerships with La Triennale di Milano and Milano Design Week, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, and La Biennale di Venezia. At last year’s Venice Biennale, Sanlorenzo funded Michelangelo Pistoletto’s installation called “Third Paradise Quick Response,” which signified the yacht builder’s commitment to sustainability.

“I see art as essential to the human spirit,” Perotti tells Robb Report, adding that it’s reflected in the brand. “The journey into the arts not only enriches our designs but also inspires our entire team to push the boundaries of what is possible. It allows us to articulate our corporate identity in a way that goes beyond yacht manufacturing, opening new channels for creative and technological innovation.”

Across its yacht lines, Sanlorenzo has become a frontrunner in innovative design, both with architecture and sustainability. The 165-foot Almax, for instance, won a Robb Report “Best of the Best” award not only for its unusual interior layout but the methanol fuel-cell system powering its hotel load.

It would be hard to imagine any yacht builder from Holland, Germany, or the US investing so heavily in the arts. But in Italy, even equipment suppliers are now involved. “We have art in our DNA,” says Fiorella Besenzoni, marketing manager at Besenzoni, which has been building components for yachts since 1967. “We see beauty everywhere, not just in architecture and or museums, but everywhere we live.”

The superyacht cranes and electric gangways that Besenzoni builds makes it an unlikely supporter of the arts, but it has been part of Milano Design Week since 2023. At last spring’s event, the Sarnico-based firm collaborated with yacht designer Christian Grande to “create a poetic vision of our product,” says Besenzoni.

The “Riflessi sul mare,” or “Reflections on the Sea” installation, was positioned in the main courtyard at the Università degli Studi, a prime location for the international design gathering. The composition of mirrored metal surfaces combines with blue colors of the marine environment, and features hull-shaped bottoms and gangways, and an artist’s blue rendition of the company’s Manta helm seat.

For purists, this installation may seem closer to commercializing a product than fine art. The same goes for the previous year’s installation, which was a stainless-steel oblong structure with wooden stairs in the center.

Design has been integral to Besenzoni since the company’s foundation in 1967. “My father’s passion was always the production of technical products, but he always tried to make them not just functional, but beautiful,” says Besenzoni. “He always tried to find the balance between functionality and the style of the yachts we were building them for. Our products had to have the same elegance as the yacht.”

The installations, by contrast, have given the firm more freedom to express what they call the “aesthetics of function.”  Like Sanlorenzo, Besenzoni believes the installations can inspire more inventive designs across its product line. “Because we’re now involved with some creative and sometimes crazy minds from the art and design world, it could lead us to a different vision for something with a function,” she says.

Sacs Tecnorib’s “Mar Garrente” was another boat-based sculpture first shown at the most recent Boot Düsseldorf, the world’s largest indoor boat show. Garrente translates as a sound that is both chaotic and rhythmic, while Mar means the sea. “Think of the sea rushing but with a steady beat,” Nicola Antonelli, chief marketing officer at Sacs Tecnorib, told Robb Report. “Our boat is emerging from those rough seas.”

The sculpture, made from a single 1,000-lb. block of Bianco Altissimo marble, represents one of the company’s rigid-inflatable hulled speed boats. It serves as a conceptual bridge between its past and future. After Düsseldorf, the sculpture was moved to the entrance of the company’s headquarters in Tuscany. “The idea is to remind everyone how important our past design is for our future,” says Antonelli.

The RIB carries Sac’s traditional lines, but with a stylized look representing its future. The project took months, from cutting the massive block from the quarry to being finished piece by craftspeople at Henraux. Investing in a project like this is a new departure for the boat builder.

“It’s part of a new strategy as we expand, an experiment that shows our evolution of design,” says Antonelli. “But inside is the hidden message that anticipates future news.” More than a concept, he says, the sculpture resembles a new RIB that could be introduced in early 2026.  In a year, he says, the new vessel will help “connect the dots” with the original sculpture. Mar Garrente will also be shown at future private events, boat shows and art exhibits.

“In the future, we want to support this kind of arts program,” says Antonelli. “We see this as a business opportunity. But we’ve also found creative people whom we’re keen to stay in touch with.”

That’s a sentiment the other builders share as they move beyond boating into the world of art and design.

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