Photo gallery: Qantas' new Boeing 737-800 in Aboriginal livery

[JohnK]

As I said, this isn't objectionable, just dull.

Well, I'm probably in a minority of one, but I think this is plane (pun intended) fugly!!

You are not a minority of one. It does nothing for me either.

 

[amaroo]

It's very typical of Kimberly indigenous art.......IIRC, this artist has a price record of $300,000 and others (Rover Thomas) of the same ilk have prices sitting around the $750,000 mark.

 

[mannej]

Aboriginal? To my, very unintellectual mind, the colours are just nothing like I'd associate with indigenous art.
If this is intended, then I'm at a loss because it screams "bogan art" rather than "indigenous art" to me and does nothing to educate or inspire me to consider otherwise.

Minimalist - yes, bogan - I don't see how you can infer any such link?

 

[BD1959]

Minimalist - yes, bogan - I don't see how you can infer any such link?

Bogan to the extent of a T-shirt with mocked teeth-rips and blood and "I survived a Great White at the Gold Coast" ... I did say I'm a minority of one!!

Regards,

BD

 

[BD1959]

It's very typical of Kimberly indigenous art.......IIRC, this artist has a price record of $300,000 and others (Rover Thomas) of the same ilk have prices sitting around the $750,000 mark.

To my (uneducated) mind, Kimberley indegenous art is less abstract than examples from further inland, making far greater use of everyday objects rather than spiritual interpretations. However, the use of base colours: ochres, reds, browns - is still prevalent.

It may well be that this one artist has been accurately portrayed on this aircraft, however if I never read that this was the case and if I was one of the 97% of Australian inhabitants who never venture further than the local coffee lounge, or if I was an international visitor (which I used to be) and saw this example "cold" from a distance of 200m from the terminal window, I would think "shark attack".

Surely an artist is interested in the impact of their art on the audience .. this uneducated audience - a self proclaimed minority of one - thinks "bogan t-shirt shark attack".

Regards,

BD

 

[under the radar]

ALL art is open to interpretation....so it certainly is a success in that regard!!.... as the saying goes 'any publicity is good publicity' ...and also gives an insight into an individuals thought processes (some people will 'see' what others don't) ... currently on approach to SYD ..(time to pause for remembrance day...lest we forget)

..still in the air...watching it on flightaware

 

[cdinoz]

Whilst I know the weather is horrendous today at SYD, wondering if anyone ventured out to see the girl on finals and manage to get any photo's in flight?

I am also in agreement with other posters here too. This is a strange artwork on the 738 - and certainly not up there with past artwork. The plane from the official pics thus far looks like someone has taken a chain saw to it from a squint distance, and sawed though the front half of the fuselage.

 

[eastwest101]

I am also in agreement with other posters here too. This is a strange artwork on the 738 - and certainly not up there with past artwork. The plane from the official pics thus far looks like someone has taken a chain saw to it from a squint distance, and sawed though the front half of the fuselage.

Not being an art critic but I find the choice of aircraft a bit dissapointing, the paint scheme will never really be seen outside Australia - if they had bothered to do a A330/B747 or A380 at least it would have been seen around about the world a bit more. Seems a bit of a futile and pointless PR stunt to be on a domestic B737.

 

[cdinoz]

Not being an art critic but I find the choice of aircraft a bit dissapointing, the paint scheme will never really be seen outside Australia - if they had bothered to do a A330/B747 or A380 at least it would have been seen around about the world a bit more. Seems a bit of a futile and pointless PR stunt to be on a domestic B737.

On another forum, a QF employee (allegedly) had documented the extra fuel burn cost of both Wunala and Yananyi Dreaming. The differential on the 737 was noticeable, but given the smaller sectors was acceptable as a PR stunt, considered negligible. Now she is quite faded, there was no business case to repaint her in that manner given the massive cost involved. However, now the 744 fleet has shrunk, and the 744ER's are doing the longest regular scheduled flights (SYD-DFW-BNE-SYD) sectors they have been tasked with, the fuel burn differential was rather too much pass over, and Wunala came back from China in the standard corporate colours.

Given how wafer thin the margins are on some international flights - I don't think we will see a heavy or widebody painted up in a similar ilk again.

Painting the 738, which will fly around WA it seems initially in the first official outings, is more a PR stunt for Oz than an advert for the rest of the world - is paying respect in a way to this countries "Traditional Owners" (taking politics aside).

 

[Berlin]

Finally an Aboriginal design that actually works well- how nice is this! It looks understated, even somehow sophisticated in its simplicity and best of all, it perfectly fits the brand colours. So much better than those old ridiculous colour-splattered old attempts which were just dreadful in my eyes.

Very well done Qantas, would love to see the same or similar on one of the A380s flying internationally!

 

[drewbles]

I can't say I'm a fan. I appreciate it's traditional indigenous artwork and QF are honouring a legacy which is great.

For some reason, it just reminded me of this a little too much: