Gilberto Penzo, a recognized nautical expert, has this sector "in his blood". His maternal family had a shipyard in Chioggia where they built every local boat (sandoli, batei a pisso, bragossi, trabaccoli, and also big motorsailers, yachts and fast rowing boats). His father also worked in the industry, still in Chioggia, as a mechanic in a naval workshop where he installed and repaired the engines on fishing boats. In this world Gilberto has deepened his knowledge of the Venetian navy managing to make an infinite number of models of boats, exact replicas of real boats, produced with the same techniques, the same materials and the same original wood, after a long and careful reconstructive study. In addition to the well-known gondola, there are many other proposals such as traditional work boats, parade boats, antique ships, vaporetti, and modern boats. His goal is to safeguard the last traditional boats and the memory of ancient techniques, also creating real, practical construction manuals. He has created countless models for private collectors, public institutions, and museums, combining practical and theoretical knowledge, giving dignity to a world often known only from a folkloric point of view.