Liaigre is synonymous with elegance, simplicity and impeccable design. Founded in the 1980's by Christian Liaigre, the maison creates interiors for chalets, offices, private jets and superyachts.
Principal of yacht design at Liaigre is Breton, Guillaume Rolland. A former protégé of Philippe Starck and passionate yachtsman, Rolland has been with the company since 2002, leading yacht projects that have become celebrated classics on the water.
The Liaigre signature aesthetic – clear, uncomplicated and perfectly luxurious – couldn’t be more suited to yacht design. Here is a realm where space and weight constraints force a continuous balance between elegance and efficiency. Describing himself as rigorous and logical, Rolland’s innate sense of proportion and understanding of the constraints linked to sailing means that he embraces the challenges that come with this balance.
Over the years, Liaigre’s team have worked on six superyacht projects, each one a triumph of style and restraint. While a completely unique approach to every creation is a philosophical foundation of the studio, Liaigre’s language is evident in each project. Light and space are materials to be used in the same way as beautiful woods, marbles and leather. Colour palettes are straightforward and nothing is superfluous; luxury comes from subtlety not excess. And crucially, for Rolland, form should always follow function.
Rolland calls it the “paradox of the boat” – the seeming contradiction between the harsh elements of life at sea with the fluidity of the exterior and interior lines. In 2013, Liaigre completed the interior for the 60m ketch Seahawk. Warm, comfortable but pared-back and cool, Seahawk incorporated various clever design solutions to preserve both space – always at a premium on board – and intimacy. A window, for example, separates the living spaces from the social areas, partitioning off certain rooms without creating cabins. On board 67m S/Y Vertigo, high performance specs demanded excellent ergonomics for comfort and safety. All the furniture is fixed and storage spaces are built in, but Liaigre has still created a “distinguished work of art”, using luxurious but understated materials: darkened waxed oak, white leather, mahogany and steel.
Functionality and beauty combine in their motoryacht projects too. 2016’s M/Y Cloudbreak, a 73m explorer yacht designed to take her adventurous owner to the far corners of the globe, may have an ice belt and be ready for all conditions, but she is also sumptuously comfortable. Knowing that the yacht would frequent areas with extreme weather, Liaigre emulated the cosy warmth of a mountain cabin without being twee; spaces are welcoming and bright with light and darker woods and lacquers seamlessly interwoven.
One thing is certain. In every interior, motor or sail, land or sea, Liaigre’s priorities are unwavering: functionality, beauty and strength.
