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The question of aesthetics.
At the risk of adding fuel to the fire, already burning around the stake, the designer feels he has no choice, but to confront, head on, the question of aesthetics. No doubt, to the general public, visual appeal is a very important (if not the most important) aspect of boat design. This fact has certainly played a large role in the difficulties the designer has encountered in his efforts.
The old adage that "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" is certainly true - as far as it go's (goes?). However, one needs to go a bit deeper and question what influences this judgement of the beholder. Some would say that it is a God given, inborn judgement - pure and unsullied by any temporal considerations. Well, with all due respect, BULL -----
The "eye of the beholder" is very much influenced by peer groups, cultures, societies, media and many other factors which influence mankind - for better or worse. One only needs to look around at civilizations and cultures, past and present, to see these influences.
The pertinent question, however, is what part aesthetics plays (and what part it should play) in decisions regarding boats. If one considers the car market, clearly aesthetics plays a large role in decisions as to what car one purchases to drive around town and impress the neighbors.
On the other hand , one sees very few curvaceous, fresh from first prize at the car show, vehicles - wandering around the plains of the Serengetti or the deserts of the Outback. It seems that boxy Land Rovers and the like are far preferred in these areas. A good illustration of that other old adage " Form follows function" and an indication that the automobile market is still somewhat rational.
No doubt both aeronautical and automotive designs are targeted, to a great extent, at
keeping air resistance to a minimum. There is good reason for this as, in the case of planes, air resistance comprises virtually 100% of total resistance and cars are not too far behind. The resulting curvaceous forms are, therefore (virtually 100%, in the case of planes, and to some part, with respect to automobiles) a perfectly rational response to the design requirements.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many, if not most, boat designs. Most pleasure boats spend most of their time at the dock, at anchor, or moving relatively slowly - very slowly compared to planes. Considering their usually incredibly inefficient hulls, and that water is 800 times denser than air, for most boats, air resistance comprises a very small part of total resistance.
It would seem then, that most of the boat forms, seen today, have about as much connection to function, as the tail fins on many automobiles (and even some boats) of the fifties. In the designers opinion, the boat market is perhaps the most irrational market place on the planet - except perhaps for the art market - and of course the fashion market - and perhaps a few others.
It is perhaps understandable that the housing market indulges in extravegant flights of fantasy seeing as for eons, houses have, more than adequately, accomplished their primary design goal of keeping their occupants comfortable. For the boating market, however, to demand gratuitous and ridiculous design flights of fantasy, when boats are still very unsuccessful at keeping their occupants comfortable, or even alive, is totally, absolutely, absurd and irrational. To the designer, it smacks somewhat of "fiddling while Rome burns".
How many "pleasure boaters" need to search, in vain, for a comfortable place to rest their sore butts, be shaken and pounded half to death, be scorched by the sun, half drowned by spray, hang over the rail puking their guts out - or , worst of all, dog paddle about on the ocean, while their highly stylized status symbol sinks slowly beneath them - before they see the error of their ways?
Like a plane, car or house, the primary purpose of a boat is to keep it's occupants
comfortable (and, most importantly, alive) - in whatever environment it might be operating. If one is running around in circles, in protected waters, for a few hours - trying to impress people, by all means, pay tens of thousands of dollars for sexy curves, fancy graphics and sinful amounts of horsepower -- tail fins might be due for a comeback too.
On the other hand, if one is planning to spend a significant amount of time on a boat, actually "doing things" (some of which may require venturing into open waters) the situation is quite different. In the designers opinion, it could be considered "certifiably insane" or at the least, remarkably stupid - not to attach paramount importance to the degree of utility, comfort, and safety, which a boat provides.
One important aspect of comfort, no doubt, is minimizing the amount of money shelled out at the fuel dock and thereby minimizing the resulting financial pain. If one still feels a craving for something visually appealing, we would suggest spending a couple of the thousands, saved at the fuel dock, on a nice painting and hang it in the boat - where everyone aboard will be able to look at it - in comfort.
The preceding rant is hardly likely to have much effect on the boating public and it probably doesn't matter much anyway - seeing as sales to private individuals wil be some time off for us. Also, as demonstrated in the rapid embrace of "boxy" fast ferries, by both commercial interests and the public at large, people can adapt their aesthetic tastes very rapidly - when "function" hits them across the back of the head with a 2 x 4.
In closing, the designer has, clearly, argued vehemently on the side of nurture v.s. nature - in regard to personal aesthetic tastes. On the other hand, however, all aspects of human behavior are invariably a combination of the two. Consider the two images below:
The designer could argue that "God" has told him that boat A is more pleasing to the eye. and is therefore the "better" boat. We would guess that virtually everyone would agree with this judgement and there is no question that, in fact, boat A will perform much better than boat B. Does that mean "God is telling us this - in his own way?
For a "modest fee" of perhaps $100,000.00, any talented boat designer (a category which definitely does not include this designer) could employ his arsenal of "sweeping curves and bold ellipses" to apply an "Italian styled makeover" to boat B. The result would be (at the small inconvenience of perhaps more than tripling the construction cost and significantly detracting from the overall utility and functionality) that virtually everyone would agree that boat B is the the more aesthetically pleasing of the two - and, therefore the "better" boat.
Does this then mean that "God" is now telling us , in his own way, that boat B is the better performing boat? Clearly, it does not. It just means that a very talented boat designer has succeeded in creating an "optical illusion" that confuses the innate visual judgement of virtually everyone - except "God". This is why he gets the big bucks - the boat designer - not "God"
Let me try one last, tired thrust of my pen - before I drag my bloodied body from this battlefield. Your average house has a cruising speed of 0 m.p.h. - your average boat say 15 mph - your average car say 60 mph - your average plane say 300 m.ph - your average rocket ship say 2000 m.p.h. Surely, seeing that a boat's speed is much closer to the speed of a house than the speeds of these other vehicles, it makes sense that a boat should be closer in appearance to a house rather than to a car -- or a plane ---- or a rocket ship.
If one accepts this hypothesis, a great many benefits ensue. Most houses are extremely efficient (on a, per dollar invested, scale) at providing comfortable accomodation. It stands to reason then, that the closer a boat design is to usual house designs, the higher it will rate on this comfort / cost scale. The converse is also true of course - which perhaps helps explain the extraordinarily high prices for rather cramped and confined accommodations on most pleasure boats today.
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The question of Aesthetics.
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