This is a volume rich in powerful images, dedicated to the most overwhelming and intoxicating aspects of the sea, the incredible violence unleashed during storms, and the extraordinary force of waves with their disturbing beauty. The sea is life, pure energy expressed in ways that evoke the most diverse states of mind. The sea is movement. Nothing embodies certain explosive sensations, feelings or uncontrollable urges better than waves breaking on rocks during a storm, exploding in white clouds of salt water, or the violence of a storm in the open sea, when nature's irrepressible fury is unleashed in all of its unpredictability. In these pages, the sea is also revealed as the symbol of nature as a friend, as a positive force running through the white swirls of waves. It is ridden with mastery and audacity by adventurous surfers, protagonists of an extraordinary gallery of images. They venture patiently and fearlessly into the midst of frightfully powerful waves up to 17-feet (5-m) high, in order to ride their clear blue surface with an unmatched thrill. And there they go, leaping onto the crest of the wave at precisely the right moment, to finally dominate the wave and, in doing so, to exercise the same control over themselves, their emotions, and their own lives. Just as captivating are the images of other men battling against the force of the sea; famous sportsmen or common workmen caught in the vortex of a storm, with all their senses alert and the tension that comes from feeling all their remaining energy put to the test. Giant waves rise high and menacing, then crash down on the seamen with an infernal roar. The waves strike the ship with increasing speed and intensity, while the air resonates with the strident sounds of the storm. This book evokes the voice of the storm through a collection of powerful photographs that arouse strong emotions, both in those who know the sea well through direct experience, and in those who dream of it, like a mirror of their own soul and the expression of multiple states of their own conscience. ILLUSTRATIONS: 106 colour photographs
