ON THE HORIZON
A 377-FOOT TWIST ON A CANOE
Oceanco’s Tuhura—a 377-foot (115-meter) concept with exterior styling by Lobanov Design, interior design by Achille Salvagni Architetti and engineering by BMT Nigel Gee—has a look reminiscent of the dugout boats used hundreds of years ago, paired with the sophistication of a 21st century superyacht.
“The thought was to take a natural shape similar to those seen in the earliest canoe-type craft and augment it multifold to a larger scale, using modern technology,” Igor Lobanov says.
The design is flexible in length, with options ranging from 262 to 394 feet (80 to 120 meters). The hull has horizontal windows that would be built with what Oceanco calls advanced glass technology. It consists of a series of dots, making the view from inside seem normal while from the outside, the windows appear to be the same color as the hull, disguising them.
The name Tuhura derives from the Maori verb meaning to discover, investigate or examine, just as Polynesians once did in outrigger canoes across thousands of miles of open Pacific Ocean.
BMT and Oceanco developed a hybrid Azipod contra-rotating propulsion system for Tuhura. It’s based on a design from 2003 that has since been used on commercial vessels. The yacht’s speed would be 18 knots.
The cultures of East Asia and the Pacific Islands inspired Tuhura’s interior. Salvagni refers to the interior—soles, walls and overheads—as “a big brushed teak box” that includes thin reveals in gunmetal and natural bronze, with tatami floors. He used what he calls “primitive, organic shapes” throughout the décor, in keeping with the overall concept.
Tuhura is a design for someone with a pioneering spirit. She is fully engineered and ready to be built by a client who dares to be different.