Christian Grande create the new cleat Gem Diamond combining functionality and design
by Christian Grande 17 Feb 2024 21:33 AEDT
The new cleat Gem Diamond © Christian Grande
Fifteen years after the creation of the first Gem cleat by Foresti & Suardi, Christian Grande has designed the new Gem Diamond, combining functionality and design in a unique accessory.
Fifteen years have passed since Christian Grande designed Gem, a cleat with a pure and minimal design that marked a break with tradition and that has achieved worldwide success since its debut. Cleats are no longer just functional items since Gem by Foresti & Suardi first appeared - they are also an ornament.
Gem immediately impressed with its minimal, unique design, characterised by a polyline without overhangs. "In its apparent simplicity, it is the most difficult and sophisticated expression of the language of minimalism," explains Christian Grande. "It represents the subtraction of everything that is not strictly essential; what is necessary is not considered the minimum but the maximum. I wanted to create the maximum expression of functionality, drawing it with the minimum number of elements."
Made of stainless steel, developed in five sizes and also available in a retractable version, the Gem can be mounted on motor and sailing boats from 17 to 80 feet. Fifteen years after its presentation, this cleat is still a great success and Christian Grande has decided to celebrate it, creating a version that we can call "special edition".
The name provides a hint of what special feature to expect: Gem Diamond, presented for the first time at METS 2023, the world's most important event dedicated to nautical equipment, expresses its aesthetic geometry through facets that bring to mind diamond milling. No longer is it a "silent" detail of a boat's deck, it has been transformed into a decorative element, like a brooch pinned to a dress.
"The concept is to enhance the appearance of the boat on which the Gem Diamond cleat is mounted, exactly as a brooch brings light to the face of the person wearing it," continues Christian Grande.
The polyline matrix of its design is what ensured the success of the original Gem, but in this case, each surface is processed and carved like a diamond: each facet is exposed to different reflection angles and contributes to enriching the perception of contamination and light that depend on the different surrounding contexts.
The value is further characterised by numerical control processing: each Gem Diamond is made individually, starting from the steel block. For this reason, its size can be customised for yachts and boats of different lengths.