Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program Blog

The sea is a jewel box glittering with the colors of the rainbow. The colors compete with each other, or jostle each other, to radiate in splendor. The creatures of the coral reef do not waste time to absorb the sun’s rays to integrate them into themselves, so that they can riot in all their glory. As I purify my senses and push the shutter, infinite waves of sensation rush into my awareness. There before my eyes unfolds a scene that can only be described as “miracles under the waves.”

As I draw the curtains on the miracle, I find myself in a lodge of surprises and sensation. Then, I see in the distance where the lights and the tides cross, in the heated nucleus of life.

– Akiyoshi Ito, Photographer