Luxardo and his Optima Design team are behind three upcoming yacht ranges by the Pisa shipyard, under new ownership since 2021.

 Antonio Luxardo 

Cantieri di Pisa has appointed Antonio Luxardo as its Chief Designer. Together with Optima Design, which he founded with Michele Zignego in 2004, Luxardo will also oversee engineering of the Pisa shipyard’s new projects, which include three yacht ranges to be announced in the coming months.

Based in La Spezia, Optima Design employs 30 professionals from the yachting, industrial design, automotive and strategic communication sectors. With the studio, Luxardo has worked on over 400 projects and with many majo Italian yards including Benetti, Sanlorenzo, CRN, The Italian Sea Group, Perini Navi, Baglietto and Amer. Recent projects include Versilcraft’s SportAdventure 45 and two designs for Amer: the 41m Explorer and the 70 Steel.

Luxardo, who holds a degree in architecture from the University of Genoa, handles all aspects of design and construction, and has worked on a wide range of vessels in terms of size, design, use and materials. He has also worked on the development of cruise ships, and designed tourism and port infrastructure projects, while his architectural experience includes residential buildings and product design.

Luxardo has now brought his expertise to Cantieri di Pisa, which was founded in 1945 and has been based on the Canale dei Navicelli (Navicelli Channel) since 1956. Having built and delivered over 700 yachts before closing in 2012, the shipyard was acquired and relaunched in 2021 by current owner Enrico Gennasio.

Luxardo said: “Cantieri di Pisa is a brand that has made history in the Italian yachting industry from the post-war period to the present day, profoundly changing and innovating the sector. Therefore, our starting point is respecting the brand’s DNA, so the new yachts are immediately recognisable.

“The upcoming series combine the style features and refined lines of Cantieri di Pisa yachts with the latest design and technology innovations developed by today’s yachting industry.”

www.optimadesign.it
www.cantieridipisa.com