Scene on the Sound: Art Aboard!

Royal Caribbean with Bear
Photo by Jan Hansen in September 2023

According to Travel Weekly, as Royal Caribbean chairman Richard Fain told one puzzled travel agent during an inaugural cruise: 'The bear is a little bit ridiculous, and certainly unexpected,' then added, 'But isn’t she great?'

The bear's prominence symbolizes the importance of art on the Royal Caribbean fleet.

'Art is an integral part of the vessels. A ship has to appeal to all the senses,' Fain said. Art is also 'one of the more controversial things. Everyone has an opinion.'

Fain calls the eight-ton bear made of 1,340 stainless steel triangles 'Felicia.' The Denver-based British artist Lawrence Argent's stainless-steel sculpture is titled 'From Afar.'