Hakvoort 125

Previous design motifs for the Beys have included contemporary aboard Pegasus and traditional, which they crafted alongside Andrew Winch on Campbell Bay. This time around, French Moderne—a design period that ran parallel to Art Deco in America—was selected for the living spaces. In the main salon, deco-style furniture such as the armchairs and the aft port armoire support the theme. Much of the furniture was crafted in Italy and then installed on the yacht, which gives the feeling that they are separate pieces, not built-ins. The materials and textures of the floors transition pragmatically from hard (and easy to clean) leather near the aft doors, to carpeting in the middle social area, to hard leather again forward, below the tables. Reaching back to Mr. Bey’s comment on versatility, while the owners almost never dine indoors, the two forward game tables articulate around and lock into position with an additional leaf that creates another dining table for 10.

Part of the inherent and organic beauty of Perle Bleue is the consideration given to every natural material used on board. As opposed to a sensory overload of gilt, lacquer or accessories, woods, stones, leather and metals are employed in unique ways that surprise, but never overwhelm. A vivid example is in the main-deck powder room where Starkey installed a rare marble that runs two-thirds of the way up the walls and ends in a jagged break, where it is joined by a mirror that continues the rest of the way up the wall to the ceiling. The effect of the seam where stone meets mirror is reminiscent of a ridgeline. The space is finished with a hammered copper pedestal sink and a monochromatic wood checkerboard veneer on the door that matches the companionway treatment.

While the living areas are French Moderne, the master stateroom takes on another design directive: Indochine. For those well versed in world history, the design movements should not seem too far apart. French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954—a period that includes the realm of French Moderne or Art Deco. The Zen-like suite is tempered by elements such as lacquered night tables and a geometric terraced divider that smoothly make the transition from deco to Asian.

Though serene and quiet, the suite has many details. Bamboo veneers dominate the floor, while a low platform bed and shoji screen window treatments bring in the Orient. For bedside lighting, gold-leaf brackets that match the room divider support two hurricane lanterns. The fixtures are so dominant that the need for a headboard disappears. In its place is a special work of art—a stirring triptych commissioned by the Beys from an artist in Monnickendam, the village where Hakvoort is located. The subject of the three panels is the view from the bottom of the sea, looking up.

Past the divider is the dressing room with vanity and walk-in closet. Like the rest of the suite, the closet is calmly wrapped in whitewashed teak. Glass drawers allow you to see the perfectly folded contents they enclose. Something about it evokes a Louis Vuitton or Hermès boutique—the perfect atmosphere for a closet to replicate.

The bathroom, with its luxurious soaking tub and custom washbasins, is a tour de force of textured stones and finishes. They include Riven stone (or slate), Jerusalem stone and mother-of-pearl walls. The rain-shower room is floored in river rock. A final touch is the portlight, where a collage of materials and square and circular shapes frame the constantly changing view beyond.

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