Art aboard our ships
One of the reasons for the success of the Costa trademark is certainly the attention it has paid from the outset to architectural and decorative aspects of its ships. The company has given serious consideration to the stimuli and ideas stemming from the best designs and has been able to ensure the collaboration of prestigious architects and famous artists known for their talent and spirit of innovation.The Costa ships over time represented a showcase for the most up-to-date cultural trends. Looking through the photographic history of the fleet is the equivalent of re-visiting the work of artists like Campigli, Luzzati, Tadini, Cerri, and Pomodoro, who are well-known all over the world.

A new design concept: Nino Zoncada's ships
The reconstruction of the Italian transatlantic fleet that began in the 1950s marked the beginning of a dialogue on the architectural and decorative aspects of passenger ships, and the subject of ship furnishings once again piqued the interest of critics and the architectural press. Before the war, the debate had focused on the appropriateness of using styles of the past in naval outfitting, until the Modern Movement, backed by Le Corbusier's dictates, adopted the ship as one of its symbols of a new esthetic concept based on contemporary language. In Italy, the new look was popularized by the Trieste architect Gustavo Pulitzer Finali, who also emphasized the great skill of Nino Zoncada, the interior designer of the Anna C. (1948), considered a forerunner of the new style, and of all ships in the Costa fleet until the Eugenio C. (1966). The partnership between the company and Zoncada now appears as a rare and successful example of the unity of intentions between the designer and buyer, and has led to other profitable joint ventures with companies such as Cassina that later became prestigious names in the field of design and interior decorating. Zoncada's design is distinguished by its elegance, simplicity and rationality, conveyed through his pursuit of innovative materials and decision to work with artists who could integrate their work with the special needs of ships.  It is no coincidence that some of these were also set designers, such as Emanuele Luzzati and Enrico Paolucci, or painters who were used to dealing with large frescoes, such as Massimo Campigli. Zoncada also sensed the importance of creating a unified, consistent style in the Costa ships and, thanks to the farsighted approval of the company's management, managed to give the fleet a highly effective coordinated image. The Costa ships, with their modern interiors, thus became the symbol of a comfortable, up-to-date style of travel.

Ships with Italian design
During the first program to expand and renovate the Costa Cruises fleet in the 1990s, great importance was placed on layout, modular furnishing and a clear emphasis on accommodation function over nautical function. These considerations laid the foundation for construction of the Costa Marina in 1990, the Costa Classica in 1991, the Costa Allegra in 1992, the Costa Romantica in 1993 and the Costa Victoria in 1996. Costa Cruises commissioned these new ships from major architectural firms capable of building vessels with great visual appeal and immediately recognizable Italian design. The design of the Costa Marina and Costa Allegra was entrusted to the Parma architect Guido Canali, who had handled design, restoration and conversion of large museum complexes, residential structures, and corporate architecture. His career is characterized by his love for technological and material display and his expressive functionalist style. The Costa Classica and Costa Romantica, on the other hand, are the work of Pierluigi Cerri of the Milan architectural firm Gregoretti ed Associati, which follows the Italian Rationalist tradition and its language of clarity and formal severity. The Costa Victoria was also designed by Pierluigi Cerri, in conjunction with Ivana Porfidi and the Swedish naval architect Robert Tillberg, and is distinguished by a more imposing style than earlier ships in the fleet. The works of art brought onto Costa ships are perfectly integrated with the structure and interior decoration and add to their poetic significance. Featured artists include Emilio Tadini, chosen by both Canali and Cerri, Arnaldo Pomodoro, who created a large spherical bronze sculpture for the Costa Classica, the Japanese artist Susumu Shingu, and many others.

The "wonder" ships

Costa Atlantica
The Costa Atlantica, the ship designed by the American architect Joe Farcus, opens the new century with a homage to Federico Fellini by Milo Manara, whose drawings illustrating the great film director's masterpieces decorate the insignia of the ship's 12 decks. There is an incredibly rich selection of artwork aboard the ship: the Costa Atlantica is a traveling museum of contemporary Italian art, with over 400 original works by famous, honored artists such as Paul Pennisi, Sergio Benvenuti, Luciano Vistosi, Lucio Bubbaco, GianMaria Potenza, Milo Manara, GianMaria Ciferri, Inos Corradin and Carlo Moretti. The two restaurants on the upper decks, the Botticelli and the Club Atlantica, offer guests works of great artistic value and impact: Luciano Vistosi's glass staircase that connects the two restaurants, offering a spectacular walkway suspended above the foyer at a height of over 40 meters; the imposing dynamic sculpture of Atlas by GianMaria Potenza, and Carlo Moretti's splendid, exquisite Murano glass chandelier. Finally, the Costa Atlantica is home to the Caffè Florian: the eighteenth-century café has been faithfully reconstructed to offer guests the beauty of its frescoes and furnishings.

Costa Mediterranea
Like its twin sister the Costa Atlantica, this ship was designed by Joe Farcus, whose interiors were designed as a tribute to Italian art and architecture. He was inspired by the most refined interiors of palaces and castles from the twelfth to the nineteenth centuries, from Siena's medieval Palazzo d'Elci to Bellagio's Villa Melzi d'Eril: buildings that are perhaps little known, but extraordinarily beautiful and elegant. The hall of the Costa Mediterranea is the setting for a spectacular work by contemporary artist Gigi Rigamonti dedicated to the Mediterranean. It is a full 25 meters high and recalls a huge eighteenth-century altarpiece, with earthly figures at its base and a triumph of angels soaring towards the heavens. The figures on the ground are characters in the Commedia dell'Arte. The figures suspended in the air are dancers. The dance theme continues in the hall through photographs by Angela Cioce, a Bari photographer who works closely with Maurice Bejart.  The other public areas of the ship are also decorated with a great variety of extraordinary works of art, ranging from Augusto Vignali's masks, inspired by the Commedia dell'Arte, to an exquisite collection of antique Chinese earthenware; and from Gianmaria Ciferri's silk-screen prints to the 139 silver pieces on display in the Ristorante degli Argentieri.

Costa Fortuna
In service since November 2003, the largest of Italy's passenger ships also bears the mark of architect Joe Farcus. The source of inspiration for its interiors are the Italian liners of the past that are its ideal legacy. Indeed, the Costa Fortuna was the first large ship to be built in the historic Sestri Ponente shipyards since the Michelangelo, which was inaugurated in 1965. It inherits the tradition of a company that was one of the first in the world to offer a passenger service between Italy and the Americas. The Italian transatlantic liners of the past are the source of inspiration for the Costa Fortuna's interiors and the names of its public areas, and the ship also includes models of period ships such as the Michelangelo and the Rex. Many public areas are decorated with reproductions of advertising posters designed in the 1920s and 1930s by Vittorio Accornero and Franz Lenhart. Like the Costa Mediterranea, the Costa Fortuna is also decorated with works by Augusto Vignali: silk-screen prints of posters advertising the Michelangelo and Raffaello transatlantic liners. The Costa Fortuna has also been celebrated by artist Emanuele Luzzati in a series of numbered silk-screen prints dedicated to the christening of Costa's new flagship.

Costa Magica
The Costa Magica, twin sister of the Costa Fortuna, came into service in October 2004.  The ship is dedicated to the most fascinating Italian places, and it is created as an ideal journey, full of images, atmosphere and emotions, inspired by almost all of the Italian regions. The main idea inspiring the internal design, planned by Joe Farcus, is to catch the magic of a country rich in extraordinary places, traditions and landscapes. In order to express this idea, particular destinations were chosen that characterised the charm of Italy. Costa Smeralda, Ostia Antica, Positano, Portofino, Palinuro, Sicily, Isola Bella, Spoleto, Capri, Grado, Vicenza e Bressanoneare just some Italian places which give their name and inspiration to the interiors. The main inspiring theme recurs in most important public areas, corridors, lifts, stairs and lobbies, decorated with images of some of Italy's magical places. The Costa Magica is a ship with clear and soft colours, delicate shades and soft lines. Onboard of the new flagship the magic is also evoked by a great number of pieces of art that enrich interiors.  Some of these were created by university teachers and students from the Academy of Le Belle Arti of Brera. 

Costa Concordia
The interiors of the new flagship Costa Concordia, in active service from July 2006, were designed by Joe Farcus, inspired by the European architectural styles up to the twentieth-century: from the Irish Gothic, to the Belgian deco art, to the Austrian Baroque, to the Italian postmodern. Onboard public areas are indeed named after some of the most fascinating European cities, from the architectural point of view: Paris, Dublin, London, Prague, Vienna, Lisbon, Stockholm, Helsinki, Barcelona, Milan, Rome, Athens, Budapest. The European leading wire also binds works of art that will be exhibited onboard the ship by Nicola Salvatore, artist and painting teacher at the Academy of Le Belle Arti of Brera. The wide and original artistic collection of the Costa Concordia indeed involves well-known artists and joung students of the Art Academies of different European cities, reflecting Costa Crociere objectives to present a window of the European artistic panorama with a focus on young talents.