Born in the Italian Renaissance, ballet has evolved as an elegant art form requiring precise mental rigor that manifests in a choreography of movement. Thus, in the design for this boat, two contour lines converge – one angled, the other curvilinear – to create a play of static fluidity. For its fabrication, in reference to the five basic ballet positions, the formwork was subdivided into five parts. In the final form, the trace of each segment highlights the key sectional profiles that modulate the overall composition. To keep this massive object afloat, its hull connects bow and stern through a narrow, linear surface constructed from opposing end points – like a ballerina en pointe, who balances her whole bodyweight on the tip of her toes. As the heaviness of concrete contrasts the fluidity of form, Balletto Concreto formalizes the beautiful tension between a dancer’s grace and the body’s constraint.

Specially made for Flota Cerámica 2021. Proceeds benefit Ballets de San Juan.