A beautiful curve?

Well said. Thais believe Western food is not delicious because it 'has no taste', tat for them means it is not spicy and not burning their mouth...

 

When I started apprenticing as a boat carpenter, at 11, the shipwright told me that ugly boats are hard to build. The lesson is that ugly curves are harder to form in wood than easy ones.

 

Studies of 'abstract art' ( your Jackson Pollock's etc ) indicate that we humans have an innate instinct for shapes that match successful organisms (symmetrical, streamlined, powerful ) , and shapes that are common in nature ( wind carved stone hollows, curving branches of a tree, the ragged edge of some leaves).

Since we often have to trust our lives to these strange floating organisms, perhaps we prefer to be carried by shapes that indicate strong, efficient abilities, and timeless, long surviving structures.

For example, you would never find a horizontal symmetrical shape in natural organisms ( e.g. a flat sheer ) - better to have a muscular but streamlined curve to fight the wind and waves. Likewise, the most appealing proportions tend to mimic the fractal patterns found in natural structures.

Maybe there is something in those observations ....

 

It seems there is a nature vs nurture, DNA vs environment, type argument about art.

Another argument might be … If elements of art and beauty can be dissected from the whole and have value evaluated impendent of the whole. If one accepts that there is value in considering abstract elements, as I would expect boat designers would, then nature vs nurture argument can be applied to the elements of art.

There is branch of the science of physiology called “human perception”.
After a Google and cursory survey of “human perception” and curves, it seems one could draw correlations between the ease of human perception and beauty. A paper claims that the eye traces curves with low curvature quicker (thus easier) than the same length line of higher curvature. Perhaps the cliché “easy on the eyes” has profound value in analysis of art.

http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/xhp/17/4/997/

There was another paper which did not claim scientific rigor but observation and analysis perception of the ‘golden section’ ratio.
http://www.ricercata.org/davidpocknee/davidwebsite/writing/golden.pdf

I’ve heard the same argument about “symmetry”, Symmetry makes perception easier.

The general idea is that our ability to perceive effects what we consider beautiful.

Back to the perception of motion:
I’m not comfortable with the idea that applying “unbalanced” visual mass and un-equal overhangs implies motion on boats. I’m not sure if I’m reluctant to accept this because of 1) physical dynamics are intuitively different on water, 2) I’m having difficulty separating my ideas of beauty and perception of motion, 3) my preconceptions of beauty and boats just makes it difficult, 4) or some other cause.

 

curves

All this talk and no pictures? I'll fix that.

 

I will agree with philSweet...
and, a sailboat that looks like it is moving even when it is still is an artistic beauty. Harmonious lines and sensual shape...one of the elements that make something beautiful it is when itself betrays what it is intended to do. If we find out what it is that makes a pretty painted static woman looks like that swinging then we will find out what makes a still sailboat to have a motion illusion...

 

A sailboat doesn't have to be very curvaceous, or to have a particularly pronounced sheer or overhangs to make it look attractive.
For example, simple and clean lines makes these two boats very sexy, imo:

http://www.berckemeyer-yacht.de/yachts/New Yachts/BM23_classic.html


http://www.blur.se/2009/03/26/kelt-cognac-yacht-design-13/


Though there is one visual trick which the designers have used, to make them look more sexy and attractive. Let's see if you folks will notice it.

 

Thankfully boat building is seldom handled like legislation where we have to build them to find out what they look like.

 

From a most famous designer (of anything but boats) for a most famous designer (electronic devices)
Venus

 

If you didn't know it was a boat, it would look like a waterfront condominium.

 

in all of art, but particularly in graphic art, there is something called "movement", which is basically all the lines and angles that tend to draw your eye to one element in the picture. In a portrait for example, all of the lines and color in the background, and in the folds of the clothing, "point" towards the face of the subject. This is also true of landscapes as well, if it is just plants and trees and mountains, it is boring, but if there is one tall mountain in the center, and all of the foreground and surrounding hills, draw the eye to a majestic craggy mountain, it will be interesting. You naturally center on the drama of a mountain peak. this same principle applies to paintings of sailboats: I have one water color of two gaff rigged schooners in a race, the sails are full, the boast are heeled over, you can smell the wind and feel the tension in the shouds and sheets. I love the painting, it has "movement", you can see and feel the action of these boats just looking at a painting of it.

Now if you apply these ideas to the design of boat hull, you can make it seem like it is moving even when sitting at anchor. Even a few simple curved lines, how they interact with the water line, the curve of the cabin, deck and gunwale, will naturally draw your eye to where these lines converge toward the front of the boat. giving you a sense of motion. the so when the "movement" of the lines draws your eyes forward, it looks like it want to move. Imagine if you will if these same hull lines drew you eyes to the stern, it would not seem like the boat is moving at all.

If you look around at things you think are attractive in art, sculpture, or boats or even cars, you will start to notice this "movement", or how the lines draw your eyes to one aspect of the object or picture. Watch for it and you will see it, the best artists and designers know this open "secret".

 

Which allows me to segue to these curves describing the motions of kayaking in
LEDs on Canadian lakes...
http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2014/12/water-light-painting/

 

The iYacht.

 

View from the stern quarter?

 

Naaah, bow quarter often looks much better, unless the stern has some feature which one wants to emphasize (like the boat in the photo number 2).
(Hint: observe the deck...)