So many UGLY yachts!

I feel the same as you Pascal, but for many reasons I should not say too much of what my fellow designers are creating...
In the 1990:s when I lived in Monaco, I used to see when brand new yachts arrived at the port to show off and I listened to comments from the bystanders. When a yacht looked very different in those days, people usually, and wrongly, thought it was a Bannenberg design... When I told Jon about this he just called them "non-designs" and this is what I have continued to do. There are a lot of them these days...

My latest little design is actually a reaction to all the non-designs, almost plain vanilla..

UHV is an acronym for the new line from Lazzara meaning Ultra High Volume. Given Dick Lazzara's penchant for space utilization, a befitting term. He's famous for squeezing the most amount of room out of a given space. But for the uninitiated, UHV might as well be Ugly Hull Variation.

When it comes to design I'm old school too, favoring traditional Raised Pilothouse lines over the sexy, swoopy stuff coming from Italy which typically sacrifices utility, access and ergonomics to make a statement. These new offerings from OA, CL, Horizon and now Lazzara offer a lot of amenities but I question if these over-styled designs will stand the test of time. Like everyone else, I'm amazed at the diversity we're seeing in the industry. Good, bad or ugly... there's a bridge for every butt.

Floating lifestyle platforms. Boats for people who aren’t boaters.

Almost, but not quite, it has your name all over it and I am happy to say it does not belong in this thread.

Some of the UHV's are so fat and homely I think of them as "BLOATS" instead of "BOATS."

Giving the Italian stamp is always too easy....

When considering that wide body where invented in USA, in the seventies.
And while Italians followed suit in the eighties (Alfamarine and Conam), the access was still better to most of the USA Hatteras to around a vessel via the flybridge.
Also in my experience most Italian boats have among the best side deck access bar none and they are in most cases wider.
As for cruisers and yachts Italians had also for example better access to many when engine where located centrally as you could access via the cockpit hatch unlike most others which needed removal of saloon carpets and floors to inspect the engine. Speaking of dimensions about 12 to 20 meters here)

Anyways the above yachts are both not Italians; first is a Horizon FD80 designed by Dutch Cor D.Rover and the second is a Princess X95 designed by Pininfarina and Olesinski.
In the end I think a designer will ultimately give the builder what he wants.

There was no need for me to limit the swoopy stuff remark to a specific geolocal. There are manufactures from every country that put style before ergonomics and access. I'd like to redact my statement about boats built in Italy, however I stand by my accusation that they are often sexy.

Thank you Liam!

I know this is an old thread, but I docked next to a Horizon 105 FD this past month in Martha's Vineyard. It had the HV concept and dreadnaught appearance.

I asked the captain about the boat and its handling, to which he said: "It was ok until we lost our stabilizers. We came across from Nantucket and rolled upwards of 20 degrees in the beam sea. Scared the wits out of me..."

Just took this yesterday while cruising Siver Ray in Trieste. Impressive from afar, but just bizzare. Zadar today en route to Athens. MOD EDIT: resize image and reuploaded

I agree, bizzare but I would add ugly and totally unpracticable both for motoring and sailing. Design over functionality!

Just my 2 (Euro) cents.

No other floatsum I know that ugly.
Typing out loud, think she WAS a Ruski boat.

A is indeed Russian owned, and was the second huge yacht designed for the owner by Philipe Starck, a French industrial designer and architect who has probably never been out in a boat in his life. He supposedly sketched out the exterior shape for A in a few minutes. Truly weird looking vessel. Starck also designed a huge powerboat that looks vaguely like a submarine, I believe for the same owner.

During a recent evening. while I slept, the bottom photo of your post slipped into a berth right on my transom. I woke up and almost spit my coffee as I managed the shock of my view. Just horrible.

I have had a decent look around this one, its very impressive up close

Modern Caligula's Barge ??

K1W1, I agree with You. She is big and impressive when looking at her from close distance. But that monster is not good for anything, except maybe as a target for the Navy. She is what the Dutch call a "Dwarslooper" under sail and have You seen her
righting moment under different conditions. Guess, why nobody sees her sailing under full sail under more than a light brezze.

Just my 2 (Euro cents)

HTMO9