Cruise & Ferry Interiors 2021

1 0 9 creative results. But how does the process of evolving a new collection ensure that the specific requirements of the client are all incorporated on each ship? Drummond says that Saga Cruises was open-minded when it came to the evolution of the art onboard. “The company is really engaged and passionate about the art and allowed us the freedom to choose works that somewhat challenge the viewer.” The resulting visual journey acknowledges the cruise line’s brand demographics, while taking account of the level of exposure passengers might already have to art. When designing an art collection for a cruise ship, a major challenge is the requirement for many of the artworks to be planned while the vessel is still in the design stages. “Being art consultants within an interior design company, we have the benefit of being there when the space is being created, so the artwork can be integrated into the ship conceptually,” says Drummond. The fact that SMC Art had a detailed understanding of the design of Spirit of Adventure resulted in complete access to the DNA of the ship. “It is important for us to look at the general arrangement of the ship early on, to see how one area flows into another,” says Drummond. “We can make sure that tonally, artworks are working with others nearby, even in different areas. This allows us to understand the best places for feature pieces and create little pockets of surprise within the artwork collection.” This is not just a matter of aesthetics: Ratter points out that some of the feature artworks can be so large and heavy that they are regarded (for the purposes of the ship construction) as bulkheads in themselves. “Collaboration is really key for the feature pieces,” says Drummond. “We have discussions with the designers, architects, shipyards and owners. There are so many people involved in aspects like fixing mock-ups, weight calculations (the shipyard has strict policies regarding scale and materials), and certification aspects.” The 13-metre carved stone relief sculpture by Petr Weigl that dominates Spirit of Adventure’s atrium is an example of the level of planning involved in fitting a super-sized artwork into a working ship interior. Weigl’s work, which took nine months to create and install, was added in sections and panels after being produced off-site. “It was great to work on something so ambitious,” says Ratter. When it comes to showcasing smaller works, today’s cruise ships are large spaces and Spirit of Adventure is no exception. Drummond says that the ship’s collection comprises more than 1,200 pieces. “We treat them as one body of work, like an exhibition, narrowing down areas to see which artists would complement them. We also look at how artists respond to the overarching brief.” To increase passengers’ engagement with the art collection, they work hard to embed the artworks in the operational side of life onboard. This includes Petr Weigl took nine months to create the 13-metre carved stone relief sculpture for Spirit of Adventure’s atrium