Jeff Bezos has once again proven that money just can’t buy taste by adding a new figurative sculpture attached to “Koru,” his $500 million “superyacht” spotted off the coast of Spain this month- this. I have to admit, the boat itself is pretty sexy considering the price, but the fantastical figure sitting on its bow, which could be a grotesque commemoration of his girlfriend-turned-fiancée, journalist and helicopter pilot Lauren Sánchez, leaves much to be desired. desired.
The character’s face undoubtedly resembles Sánchez’s, but that’s where the artistry ends and the horror show begins. Appearing to be carved from wood and polished to a shine, the figure’s body has both arms, feathered wings, and clad quads that bizarrely morph into… betta fish fins? Your guess is as good as mine, honestly, and I take suggestions. At least the sculptor was aware enough of the female anatomy to include slightly protruding nipples running through the skintight dress which is pretty much vacuum sealed to the figure’s torso. I’m sure these are powerful lights for this 417 foot long luxury boat.
Although it is not confirmed that the sculpture was inspired by Sánchez, its appearance coincides with the news of her engagement to Bezos which became public this week.
The sculptural figure appears to be wearing a spiral emblem pendant on a necklace that references the yacht’s name, “Koru”, referring to the maori symbol which looks like an unfolding fern frond and signifies creation and perpetual motion. The Koru is also said to represent new life, a meaning that Bezos seems to take to heart since his 2019 divorce from first wife, philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott, and his 2021 resignation as CEO of Amazon followed by his first business. in outer space in a mocked penis shaped rocket by everyone in the world.
While it’s not unusual to see an upper to upper middle class man buy a boat to assuage some sort of wealth-induced midlife crisis, I think we could all do without the polished wooden sculpture boob-y, and that $500 million could have easily been used to improve working conditions in Amazon’s warehouses without taking a pinprick in Bezos’ net worth. I guess it’s kind of sweet, in his grotesque way, that Sánchez is leading Bezos into the next phase of his life through this really poorly executed artistic gesture. I may be giving too much credit, though.
