Why I Love Norwegian Breakaway’s Hull Art

Two days ago, Norwegian Cruise Line unveiled the hull art that will adorn their brand-new Norwegian Breakaway when she launches next year.  And it’s caused a surprising amount of controversy.

Norwegian Breakaway’s Manhattan-themed hull art has caused a surprising amount of controversy. Illustration courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line.

Designed by popular artist Peter Max, whose colorful designs became part of the psychedelic and counter-culture movements of the 1960’s and 70’s , the hull art for Norwegian Breakaway reflects the ship’s homeport of New York City. It marks the first time since Norwegian Cruise Line began painting colorful designs on the hulls of its ships in 2002 that they have used a well-known artist.  Max is no stranger to providing artwork for the travel industry, having designed a paint scheme for one of Continental Airlines’ Boeing 777-200ER’s.

But what is fascinating is just how much this artwork has polarized cruisers.  It seems people either love it or hate it.

Personally, I love it.

Before I get an email box full of hate-mail, let me explain: the renderings issued by Norwegian Cruise Line require a bit of imagination to fully realize them. After all, the ship itself is a basic 3D model with some basic shading applied to it, since the real deal is still under construction over at the Meyer Werft shipyards in Papenburg, Germany.

This side-view showcases Norwegian Breakaway’s hull art in a somewhat better light than the head-on view at the start of this post. Illustration courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line

Then, the artwork is a 2D image that has been applied as a texture to the hull of the 3D model. It is intended to be representative of the finished product, but by no means accurate.  Look at the hull, particularly the bow. What’s missing?  For one, shadows. For another, curves.  The bow is the most structurally unique part of a ship’s hull, yet these renderings don’t show those sleek lines, curves and shadows that would, naturally, be a part of a real photograph.

It also doesn’t take into account the way the actual paint colors will interact with the hull of the ship. For example: take a look at this rendering of Norwegian Epic and compare it with an actual photo of the real ship.  The rendering’s colors are unnatural, and the lack of detail in the 3D model tends to give it a rather odd appearance.

An early rendering of Norwegian Epic. Illustration courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line.

…and the real Norwegian Epic shown in Philipsburg, St. Maarten this past March. Photo © 2012 Aaron Saunders

So while Norwegian Breakaway’s artwork looks a little like extravagant clip art at this point, hang tight: it’s my guess that the real deal will look much better.  Artwork on the hull of Norwegian’s ships has become as much of a trademark for the line as Carnival’s iconic funnel design, or Holland America’s royal-blue hulls, so it should come as no surprise that the line has gone with something bold and daring for their latest vessel.

I could end up eating my words, but I think that once applied in real-life to the hull of Norwegian Breakaway, this Peter Max-designed artwork will go down as one of the most stunning graphics Norwegian Cruise Line has ever painted on one of its ships.