BENETTI MOTOPANFILO 37M

The Motopanfilo 37M is a yacht suspended in time, an example of classicism projected into the future. This elegant and modern composite displacement boat satisfies the tastes and needs of contemporary owners but has its roots in the design of the Benetti motor yachts of the 60s, of which it incorporates the gentle and distant fashions, yielding much larger spaces in bright and constant visual contact with the sea. The WSB team take a closer look at this modern classic.

Francesco Struglia, in collaboration with Benetti, designed the external lines, taking up the shapes and style of the past, while joining the hull and superstructure in a single harmonious shell. The profile, characterized by neat and clean cuts, has been elongated and refined with austere shapes.

The Lazzarini and Pickering studio designed the interiors, powerfully inspired by the nautical tradition of the 60s, with modern technical and stylistic solutions. Loro Piana Interiors completely covered the interiors and parts of the exteriors, which are characterized by timeless elegance and furnished with classic summer and sea materials, first of all, linen, in shades of white, blue and malachite.

The Motopanfilo 37M is not the restyling of a successful yacht, but an all-round “today” project that finds inspiration in the past to project itself into the future, bringing with it an approach to life and design typical of a certain period, as well as some remembrance marks drawn from Benetti’s cultural heritage and its most iconic boats of the time.

In a time when everything runs fast, sometimes in a chaotic and repetitive way, Benetti re-proposes the dream of a past that regales us with nautical stories and myths, with a 37-meter displacement yacht in composite, an example of classicism projected into the future. The conceptual work that the Shipyard has carried out, in concert with the designer Francesco Struglia for the external lines, and with the Lazzarini Pickering Architetti studio for the interiors, far from a mere retro reinterpretation, draws its raison d’etre from the past but, enriched with new stylistic, technical and technological knowledge, it guarantees a fresh and modern imprint to the project.

Today’s Motopanfilo offers much wider and incredibly bright spaces, constant visual contact with the sea and large terraces that descend to touch the surface, but its charm is based on the same concepts of the past: an elegance far from fashion, a boat built to enhance its nature, a shell in which to feel enveloped and protected.

Motopanfilo is the Italian word used, in the early 1960s, to identify the large pleasure boats of the time which rapidly became the object of desire for members of high society, princes, industrialists and Hollywood. Benetti was among the first shipyards to convert production, launching highly successful models on the market such as the Delfino, the Gabbiano, the Mediterraneo: boats from 18 to 30 meters that began to sail first the Tyrrhenian Sea and gradually the seas around the world, so much so that in 1970, Benetti was already the fourth major manufacturer in the world. Among the most famous clients, Prince Rainier of Monaco undoubtedly occupies a place of honour, but these models became loved over the years even by quite different characters, such as David Bowie who – we read in the book The secrets of my success written by Janine Allis – used to spend his holidays hosting the likes of Mick Jagger, Robin Williams and Michael Caine on board.

The design of these boats was extremely clean and linear, without overdecoration. The hull and superstructure were conceived as a single volume, linked together by one or two perfectly coplanar style powers; the extended lines drew an elongated profile and closed with the classic round stern, making it an integral part of the boat. The interiors were warm and welcoming, characterized by the abundance of wood used for both the structures and the furniture, white sofas and touches of blue that, over time, have given life to an identifying style.

For this extraordinary project, Benetti and Loro Piana Interiors have created an important partnership which results in the complete setup, by the Maison, of the interiors and part of the exteriors of the yacht. The 37M Motopanfilo is therefore dressed in materials and fabrics of timeless elegance, also linked to an approach to life and design typical of that time.

Giovanna Vitelli, Vice President of the Azimut|Benetti Group, said she was very proud of this collaboration and commented: “There are many values that unite Benetti and Loro Piana Interiors, first of all, the craftsmanship for the product and the taste of timeless elegance. This is precisely the stylistic code of the new Benetti Motopanfilo 37M, which collects the nautical heritage of our past and projects it into the future. A perfect combination therefore with the Loro Piana Interiors style”.

The materials are the classic ones of summer and the sea, first of all, linen, a fresh and comfortable fibre par excellence, with a pleasant naturally textured surface. For the furnishing of the Motopanfilo, the Lazzarini Pickering Architetti studio chose Loro Piana Interiors linens in shades of warm white “Biancore”, with touches of blue and malachite, taking up the distinctive chromatic combination of the 1960s tradition.

Connemara, a full-bodied and resistant linen, is used for the upholstery and the bedspreads; the Papeete, in the refined Malachite, is designed for sommier and cushions. The stripes of Millwood, Devondale and Darjeeling linens enrich the warm white background with shades of blue and play with different heights and combinations. The same lines appear in the large decorative cushions that decorate all the rooms. The fire-retardant and outdoor technical fabrics, always in white and blue stripes, complete the decoration.

“The Benetti Motopanfilo 37M is the second major Azimut|Benetti project we are part of after the Magellano», explains Francesco Pergamo, Director of the Loro Piana Interiors Division. “Once again, we are asked to get on board a boat that makes its signature of elegance, clean lines and interiors devoted to pleasure and conviviality. This same vision is also part of our brand’s very DNA, creating a natural and authentic union with the 37M Motopanfilo. The fabrics, selected by the Lazzarini Pickering Architetti studio, are among our most versatile and performing materials, perfect for the sea and ideal onboard a yacht. Seeing them interpreted with such sobriety and elegance is a great satisfaction.”

The nautical sector is one of the most important for Loro Piana Interiors, thanks to a wide and well-structured offer that favours natural fibres and interprets them in a sophisticated and varied range of colours, with classic proposals and unusual accents, able to satisfy the needs of shipyards and shipowners.

Claudio Lazzarini and Carl Pickering, regarding the collaboration with the Maison, explained: “Loro Piana Interiors expresses the artisan sense of industry, which is an essential and unique component of Italian design and products that best combine research, design and quality. Taking on new challenges and developing new technologies with extraordinary elegance and great attention to quality is the perfect expression of Italian savoir-faire.

Luxury is now a widely abused term, but we are convinced that Motopanfilo 37M and her design express a new meaning for this word in the yachting world. She is a unique boat created by Benetti and Loro Piana Interiors, two Italian companies that express what luxury and the Italian ‘lifestyle’ really mean”.

On the occasion of its debut at the Cannes Yachting Festival, the furnishing accessories of Motopanfilo 37M, selected together with the Lazzarini Pickering Architetti studio, will also be curated by Loro Piana Interiors: cashmere plaids, rugs for outdoors and fabrics for interiors.

The interior and exterior spaces were developed by the well-known architectural firm Lazzarini Pickering, creators, 2004, of the Benetti Sai Ram, one of the first Superyacht to offer contemporary interiors in a style dominated by the classic.

The desire to rediscover and reinterpret the traditional elements of the motorboats of yesteryear, in the name of new classicism, led the studio to design the interior of the new motorboat like the skeleton of a large whale whose bones give rhythm to space. Hence, the primary idea of the designers was to mark the space with architecture that recall the beams of the past and dematerialize the walls, letting the large side windows contain the space, with a voluntary total opening that is not interrupted even by the furnishing elements. This work includes a skilful use of mirrored surfaces, framing the windows, reflecting the sea and sky, bringing the image inside and expanding the spaces.

The beams order and define the rooms, becoming the pentagram within which different materials pave the way for interesting decorative and functional interpretations. In the saloon, the complete replacement of the old bulwarks with exclusively glazed surfaces led the designers to decide to use wood according to a new scheme, making it the protagonist’s choice to decorate the ceilings, characterized by a vaulted effect that becomes double-curved towards the stern, thanks to excellent cabinet-making work. In addition, the use of natural wood, chosen in a warm but much lighter shade than in the past, falls into the perfect interpretation of the nautical tradition, accompanied by the use of white and blue, now in new shades.

Below deck, the desire to characterize the environments according to their nature is revealed in the choice not to rectify the sides of the hull, leaving the flare deliberately visible in the cabins and re-proposing the stylistic theme of the beam through an inversion of colours and materials. From the lobby, a spiral staircase winds around a central shaft that, almost like a spine, crosses the two decks accompanying guests up to the sky lounge on the Upperdeck.

The owners of the Roman studio commented: “Motopanfilo 37M is characterized by an unprecedented sense of interior and exterior space for a yacht of this size. Our meticulous work to physically and virtually extend the spaces, dissolving the barriers between inside and outside to achieve the feeling of being on the sea in all environments, was also accompanied by extreme attention to detail and to some materials of great merit.

These characteristics and the feeling of continuity of the main deck saloon and the external areas with the generous beach platform have made it possible to create a boat that did not exist before”. The layout places the owner’s suite forward on the main deck and four comfortable guest suites on the lower deck, all with double beds according to desire. On request, it is possible to install a small sauna also on the lower deck.

An element that unequivocally distinguishes the new Motopanfilo is the external volume: Francesco Struglia takes up the forms of the powerful style of the past and naturally joins the hull and the superstructure, uniting them into a harmonious element. The external profile, characterized by neat and clean cuts that enhance the lines of the boat, has elongated, elegant and austere shapes. The boat is a shell that envelops and protects those on board, a true architectural envelope that develops, through a minimal load-bearing structure, a design that highlights light.

Negative shapes break up the surfaces with a very modern 45° cut, and where once the volume cuts were finished with a wooden headband, now there is a bronze-coloured strip to emphasize the new taping, which defines the bulwark and turns on itself up to the stern creating decor theme both modern and classic at the same time.

The study aimed at combining classical inspiration with the search for something new finds its culmination in the transom. Here, the lines are completely integrated into the volume of the hull, adhering to the spirit of the round sterns of the 1960s, yet differing in shape, which must meet the needs of today’s owners and offer a great beach club. The central hatch opens forward to increase its surface while becoming the bathing platform. Tenders and jet skis find shelter in a side garage so as not to interfere with life on board.

The Observation Deck is noteworthy, once built around the central mast, takes a new shape onboard the new Motopanfilo. Positioned above the hardtop, it becomes a small fourth deck to be enjoyed in absolute intimacy – with a view; comfortably lying on an enveloping chaise longue for long sunbathing sessions during the day and relaxing moments in the evening, directly under the stars.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS BENETTI MOTOPANFILO 37M

Builder Benetti Shipyard

Construction Material GRP

Length Overall (LOA) 36,8 m (120’9”)

Maximum beam 7,8 m (25’3’)’

Maximum draft 1,96 m (6’5”)

Full load displacement 230 t approx

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS BENETTI MOTOPANFILO 37M

Fuel capacity 35.000 litres (9,246 US Gal.)

Freshwater capacity 4.000 litres (1,056 US Gal.)

Main Engines: 2 x MAN V12, 1.029 kW (1.400 hp) @ 2.300 rpm 2 x MAN V12, 1.213 kW (1.650 hp) @ 2.300 rpm

Max Speed 16 / 18 knots

Cabins 5 + 4 crew

Berth 10 + 7 crew

Range at 10 knots 3.800 nm approx.

Naval Architecture P.L. AUSONIO Naval Architecture

Exterior Styling & Concept Francesco Struglia / Benetti

Interior and Deck design Lazzarini & Pickering Architects

Classification RINA Pleasure

Benetti Yachts