ART & DESIGN TAKE A BOW WISP IN THE WIND The latest revival sloop by Andre Hoek combines modern comforts and technology with old-world glamour and style. Cornelia Marioglou steps on board A bout four years ago, naval architect Andre Hoek was cruising in the Mediterranean when his telephone rang. It was an experienced sailor and yacht owner who had taken a fancy to a Hoek-designed vessel and wondered if they could speak about creating a new sailing yacht. By chance, the two were both coasting in the same waters – just 50 nautical miles apart – and that call became the serendipitous beginning of project Wisp. Many meetings followed over the following months and years, as they worked out a scheme that would allow the resulting craft to have a decent turn of speed without sailing on the edge – gentlemanly racing without sacrificing a high level of comfort and pleasure for long-distance cruising. When the blueprint was approaching completion, the client knew who he wanted to build it: Dutch master shipyard Royal Huisman, whose yachts he had also long admired. Launched to great fanfare last year, Wisp is a majestic 48m classic sloop with a cutter-rig sail plan. It has a range of 5,500 nautical miles at ten knots – ready to cross the Atlantic twice – which is possible thanks to the Alustar aluminium hull that allows for great volumes onboard. In this case, 8,000l of fresh water and 4,000l in the holding tank make journeying much more pleasant – volumes impossible to manage in a carbon hull. The ethereal, Japaneseinspired interior, which comprises an owner’s suite and three cabins, was dreamed up by Jonathan Rhoades of Rhoades Young Design. He and Hoek collaborated closely on the project, at times getting in each other’s way, says Hoek, as “the interior affects the exterior”. But they found ways to make it work: “When you open your eyes PHOTO CORY SILKEN 58 CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM
