Giovanni Da Ponte

GDP Carpenteria Nautica

Boat builder

Hand-built boats to better enjoy the sea

For Giovanni craftsmanship can provide priceless satisfaction as a profession
He combines ancient techniques with innovative features such as wheelchair platforms
His desire is to pass down the love for this craft to younger generations

Giovanni Da Ponte was born in Venice, a city he loves, along with its lagoon landscape, 150 canals and 400 bridges. Since he was a little boy, Giovanni has always been fascinated by boats. As soon as he could, in 2004, he attended a training course for wooden boat building and in 2009 he obtained the title of master in the Italian boat builders' register. Today he works in a shipyard, located in the port area of Venice, where he restores, designs, and builds wooden boats with a team of specialised carpenters, painters, mechanics and electricians. Giovanni says that his mission is to realise the wishes or the dreams of every customer, making the sea an enjoyment for all, increasingly sustainable and accessible.

Interview

How important are historic traditions in your craft?: Building boats is an ancient art that has been refined over time. Today we can leverage on the expertise of many masters of the past but at the same time we can take advantage of new knowledge and techniques. By combining these ingredients, we can create something special, and increasingly environmentally-friendly.
Why do you love your work so much?: Because it is somehow magical. Starting from an idea or a project you can build something concrete, that works, that is efficient and comfortable down to every detail.
What is your greatest achievement in practising your craft to date?: I was able to design and build a solution to make boats accessible to wheelchair users like my son. It is a lifting platform that makes it easy for the wheelchair user to enter the boat, move around inside the boat as well as steer it.
What would you say to a young person considering craftsmanship as a career?: Learning a craft is a long journey but when you manage to make something with your own hands and your customer is happy, it is an all-round satisfaction. My next dream is to organise some courses to share the beauty of this craft with young people.

Giovanni Da Ponte is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2009 and he started teaching in 2020