Baran Akalin.

I was born in Istanbul and studied architecture in the university. After my graduation, I went to USA to study industrial design in Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Then I acquired my Master's Degree in Yacht Design in Italy in IED - Istituto Europeo di Design. As well as being an academician on Yacht Design Department at Maltepe University and lecturer/consultant on Yacht Design at the Italian Design Days (IDD). Established my design studio, Akal?n Yacht Design International in 2015 with the aim of creating a perfect balance between aesthetic and functional system via timeless designs.

Many years of experience achieved by collaborating with some of the most renown design companies and shipyards brought me to become experienced in designing exterior/interior of custom yachts and serial production yachts, beginning from the conceptual drawings up to the production project and project management during construction.

First, I was thinking about car design because of my interest in motor vehicles. As a result of the research I have done over time, I have seen that the design of the car is not what it seems from the outside, certain brands cannot go beyond certain lines and the design is restricted. In addition to that, the car design team consists of many people and it is not possible to complete the design of a car alone. Because of my love for creating living spaces, I chose to design boats that offer a lot freer design experience to different brands.

I've established my design studio, Akal?n Yacht Design International in 2015. We are doing the interior and exterior designs of all yachts, houseboats and similar floating vehicles from 5 meters to 80 meters, as well as their production projects and controllership. We have our 2nd branch in Bili?im Valley, which carries out innovative projects in our country. Here we are developing different projects that have never been done before.

Design is creating something from scratch and to force production techniques and pave the way for new generation designs.

Design is to catch today's trends visually, while producing the best possible solution against need and purpose.

Good design is, perfect combination between functionality and aesthetics. Because creativity deserves it.

My design style is modern pure and elegant. And also to develop new user experiences and ensure perfect connectivity.

In boats, it usually starts from a 2D side profile and top view. More than 3 different design models are presented to the client, usually all of them are mixed with each other. After that general arrangements will be applied to selected design. Then 3D models and visuals will be created. After these are completed and approved, the production project starts and delivered to the client/builder.

I think the location of the country and the market can affect my designs, but I do not think that cultural heritage has anything to do with them.

This award means a lot to me. Not only shows how high the quality of the work we do on behalf of our company and our client is, but also shows that the work that connects us to the world not within the borders of the country. I'm very happy with the result.

Because this project has the most functional features among her equivalents. She has also created a perfect combination of these features from an aesthetic point of view. I wanted this design to find the value she deserves.

The biggest challenge was to combine many features found in larger boats to fit in a smaller boat. And while doing it, the hardest part was not to lose any functionality of the usage areas.

I can say that it plays a big role in determining the reliability of our company in the sector and the degree of goodness of the designs. It was also an honor for us to bring such an award to our country.

1. There is a wide variety of brands and these brands need new models every period.
2. Due to the wealthier clients, the budgets in designs are higher than in other sectors.
3. The clients are modern and visionary.

The fact that our country is surrounded by seas on 3 sides and it is one of the first three countries in the world that produces the most boats in this sector.

As people understand the value of spending time in private areas during the pandemic situation, we expect an increase in the number of producers in our sector in the next 5-10 years.

Creativity and learning to shape it according to people's needs.

While designing, I'm inspired by very different products instead of being inspired by similar products as everyone else does.

Daniel Simon inspired me a lot, because he has a different vision with a good balance.

Key to success is, understanding your clients needs and being on the same page.