A picturesque project that I took up for the 2004-05 Holidays, I set out to choose and share a few of my photographs that demonstrate a «sense» of my conception of Christmas and the New Year. Though Christmas celebrates Christ's birth, the new year in Japanese culture eclipses other holidays in importance as it's the moment when we start our lives anew filled with fresh hope and expectations for pleasant things to come. Hence I've included imagery for wish-making or prayers in the form of wax candles, yak butter candles in Nepal and Tibet, prayer flags, Japanese votive plaques, the rising sun, star-filled skies, Tahitian flowers, even commercial window displays that seize the dreamy imagination of a child. The photos change thematically as you progress. Rather than smother the photos with excessive explanation, I invite you to page through this gallery and sample some of the places and sentiments I've experienced in recent travels. Many photos were taken in Italy, a distractingly beautiful place and culture that merit peripatetic exploration.

erickyo@soda.berkeley.edu

Feel free to email with thoughts, impressions, comments, and suggestions -- or to ask specifics about photos. I've written light descriptions of where they were taken. I'd be delighted to hear your feedback.

Unframed photo slideshow (recommended for 1024x768 or less)

La galleria foto senza frame, consigliata per i monitor con risoluzione qualsiasi inferiore o uguale a 1024x768

Framed and indexed photo gallery for higher resolutions

La galleria foto con frame, consigliata per i monitor con risoluzione superiore a 1024x768