A Arquitectura de um Veleiro

Abstract

Sailboat design is a subject that overlaps on many levels with architecture. A cruising sailboat has to perform all of the same functions as a house, provide shelter, have systems such as heating, plumbing and electricity and accomplish this in very limited space. A boat lives in environment very different from a house, it sits on water. It also needs to move. This brings many complications. In this thesis the basic elements of sailboat design are studied, such as the physical laws governing a boat in water, the spatial organization or architecture of the interiors, cockpit and deck area, the on-board systems and the construction methods of a fiberglass boat, and how these elements influence each other. The research is then the basis for the design of a 10 meter long, monohull sailboat. Sailboat interiors have been designed by architects before, but this thesis aims find if there is something that the wholistic design approach taught in architecture can be applied to sailboat design. By thinking about the structure, materials, organization of the inside and outside in connection with the surrounding environment all together as a whole and seeing it will influence the result. The main concept of the resulting project is a boat where the barriers between spaces are minimized. Instead of interior bulkheads forming cabins, galley and saloon in separated spaces, ringframes support the hull and open the space below into one area. The connection between the inside and outside is transformed completely from the standard narrow companionway to a wide, translucent and openable structure forming both vertical and horizontal parts of the coachroof. Combined with an open transom linking the sea or floating dock to the cockpit floor, the row of spaces along the centerline from behind the boat to the bow are usable together making better use of the limited space on a sailboat.