A fresh out-of-the-factory floating masterpiece, Nordhavn 68#25 was recently delivered to her owners in Australia, providing Pacific Asian Enterprises, Inc. (PAE) with yet another feather in its cap. Karajas is just the latest PAE-produced Nordhavn to be completed with the kind of very high-end, very customized interior one might find in the pages of a home décor magazine. She is the first Nordhavn to be fashioned in an Art Deco theme, a style the owners employ throughout their home in Sydney and wanted to carry through to their new yacht.
Interior designer Scott Cole of Seattle-based Ardeo Design led the project incorporating bold geometric shapes, rectilinear elements, and simple, clean lines indicative of Art Deco. The minimalist look sharply contrasts the traditional style most often associated with trawlers, but more often of late, Nordhavn buyers have opted to go a more contemporary route. Cole has styled several Nordhavn interiors yet had never done one in Art Deco and encouraged the owners to go in this direction, never once concerned that the ultra-modern interior would clash with the salty expedition exterior. “A Nordhavn may in theory have traditional lines, but it is, in fact, a modern and cutting edge machine,” said Cole. “An avante-garde look certainly is not out of place in a Nordhavn.”
The Art Deco style is eclectic and modern and combines traditional craft motifs with Machine Age imagery. Materials used feature the typical Art Deco colors of glossy black, chrome and silver, plus creams/off whites and shades of green. For the Karajas interior, the look was achieved first by employing a rich, dark mahogany wood throughout, light grey wall covering, white and black subway tiles and an exquisite Statuario white marble for the countertops in the salon and master head. Cole contends that Karajasprovided the ideal shell within which to try out the Art Deco look. “Because weight was not an issue, we were able to select granite and marble slabs for countertops – not only in the galley and heads, but also for countertops in the salon and staterooms,” he said.
Cole notes that the owners, who have a very good sense of humor, suggested overly decorative Art Deco elements such as nude figures or stylized animals not be included in the scheme, but the subtle stepped joinerwork details, period tile, tubular bright chrome light fixtures, and geometric bright chrome bath fixtures and door hardware pay obvious homage to the style. And touches such as incorporating polished stainless steel inlays and custom polished stainless steel fiddle rails, drive the look home.
The interior of Karajas is completely unique to any Nordhavn, yet it’s not the only thing that makes this boat stand out from others. She is the first Nordhavn 68 APH completed and delivered in Australia. While the majority of Nordhavns are commissioned at one of our U.S. locations, Karajas was shipped to Sydney direct from the Ta Shing factory in Taiwan and finalized top to bottom there. It’s a process the brand is growing accustomed to as increasingly there has become a global marketplace for Nordhavns. “It is always challenging to find quality resources like contractors, good electricians, plumbers and various marine specialists in parts of the world that are unfamiliar to us,” said Nordhavn 68 Project Manager Justin Zumwalt. “But buyers should know it’s not an obstacle. This boat was done on the other side of the world from our Dana Point, California, headquarters and she turned out spectacularly.”
Finding quality and highly skilled labor was especially necessary since Karajas employed many firsts for a Nordhavn 68. She is the first N68 to be built to CE specifications, undergoing many rigorous sea trials and inspections to make sure she lived up to the mark. She was also fitted with a tailor made fiberglass hardtop over the flybridge, received a customized Victron inverter/charger DC electrical system and is the first N68 to be equipped with the new Tier III compliant motor, a single John Deere 6135 AFM 13.5 liter main engine rated for 425 hp @1900 rpm.
Even the interior of the boat was completed via Skype calls and internet searches. Cole never once had to go to Australia, rather, bringing sample books and visiting granite showrooms in Taiwan when the entire build and design team met with the owners to oversee progress at the factory.