Marina di Loano changes its logo and awards the winners of Leisure Harbour, the international call for ideas for Marina di Loano that was launched on 30 November with the aim of consolidating and developing the entire complex. Leisure Harbour was organised in collaboration with the BT Group, a company specialised in integrated outdoor furnishing solutions, and with the support of YAC-Young Architects Competitions, a company that promotes calls for ideas and architecture fir young designers, graduates and students.
The Marina di Loano logo was the object of a large-scale restyling operation: “The aim - explained the CEO Gianluca Mazza – was to further characterise the image of Marina di Loano, beginning with what renders it recognisable on a global level; its logo. The new version features a pennant, a universal symbol of boating, and the porthole, one of the most recurring architectural elements in this sector. The result is a modern logo that contains references to life both in the port and in the area as a whole, and looks to a future that is ever-increasingly characterised by innovation and sustainability”. “With the new logo - concluded Mazza - we have strengthened the image of Marina di Loano and made it more easily recognisable on an international level”.
The new logo of Marina di Loano will make its official debut on Saturday 8 May during the hosting by the Marina of the 12th Historical Re-enactment of the Milan-Sanremo Cup, the most characteristic and historically rich Italian motoring race, taking place from 6 to 9 May. It is an event with which Marina di Loano shares the values of style, tradition, excellence and passion for sports competitions characterised by the principles of fairness and loyalty.
The winner of the Leisure Harbour award was chosen by a jury of international experts out of 124 designs from 687 nations, which offered new ideas on the 350-thousand-square-metre area of Marina di Loano, an avant-garde structure and a nerve centre of integrated entertainment for the community with services dedicated to land- and sea-based tourism (as well as more than 997, berths for boats of between 6 and 7 metres in length, including those for residents and professional fishers, parking for 899 cars, an important shipyard, the yacht club, accommodation, conference halls, restaurants, shops, a 16,000 square-metre beach with facilities, boat hire and diving centre). It is an organisation that has always characterised its development with attention to environmental sustainability and the promotion of marine culture.
The winners were the Italian team Mdarchitetti (Carlo D’Alberti and Alessandro Massaro), with a design solution that proposed a potential new face for the Marina while preserving and enhancing its strengths, such as the elevated walkway and the series of terraces offering views of the landscape. In second place was the design from the German team picture to oneself by Pavlo Babiienko (Germany), while third prize was awarded to another Italian team, rēs design studio (Veronika Merlin, Michele Corna). There were four Gold special mentions assigned by the jury to four international teams: COMETLAB from France; Team 70*3/8 from South Korea; Team DG from Mexico and Team Bogdan from Austria. The overall prize money of 20 thousand euros was divided between the award winners and the recipients of the Gold special mentions.
Gianluca Mazza, the CEO of Marina di Loano spa and member of the jury, said: “The competition was characterised by some important figures. It it worth highlighting that of the 905 participants from 68 nations, 424 are students (the other 481 are established professionals). The contest therefore saw a significant contribution of “young” ideas. Now the operational phase begins, which will lead to the refurbishment of the architectural, commercial and aesthetic aspects of our Marina”.
The mayor of Loano Luigi Pignocca, another member of the jury in his institutional role, added: “Over the years, Marina di Loano has made a determining contribution to promoting the name of our city on an international level. Not every community is able to boast one of the ten most beautiful marinas in the world and one of the best in terms of services and structures. These forms of recognition are a starting point for us. This is where “Leisure Harbour” comes in. All the projects presented were aimed at redesigning the Marina to make it even more functional, attractive and integrated into the urban fabric of our city. A united front looking towards the future, one that we are certain will allow us to continue to grow”.
Aldo Caballini, the director of Area 3 of the municipality of Loano and a member of the Jury, stressed: “Being part of the competition jury was a very interesting experience. All the projects presented contained innovative ideas, proposals and possibilities that will be useful in imagining and considering what form Marina di Loano will take in the future. We were very happy to see sensitivity to the theme of ecological sustainability, a theme that architectural firms, particularly those run by very young professionals, pay particular attention to.”
The new logo of Marina di Loano will make its official debut on Saturday 8 May during the hosting by the Marina of the 12th Historical Re-enactment of the Milan-Sanremo Cup, the most characteristic and historically rich Italian motoring race, taking place from 6 to 9 May. It is an event with which Marina di Loano shares the values of style, tradition, excellence and passion for sports competitions characterised by the principles of fairness and loyalty.