THE BIG BLUE

A hundred metres or more beneath the ocean surface in the Maldives lies a twilight zone whose strange life forms and wondrous corals remain unexplored. In a pioneering diving expedition, leading expert in the study of fish and 2021 Rolex Awards Laureate LUIZ ROCHA plans to survey these deep reefs to discover and describe unknown species and make the case for their protection.

- LUIZ ROCHA

The sea has filled Luiz Rocha’s imagination from his earliest childhood in coastal Brazil and eventually drove him to master the highly technical diving required to reach depths of 150m below the surface. In this crepuscular realm, unknown life thrives, including great forests of coral that provide both a nursery and pasturage for a host of unknown fish and other sea creatures.

In search of these deep, so-called mesophotic reefs, he now plans a pioneering expedition to explore the lower reaches of the atolls that comprise the Maldives in the Indian Ocean, a chain of islands long regarded as one of the last coral refuges on Earth. Little is known about mesophotic reefs worldwide – and nothing at all about reefs below 60m in the Indian Ocean – so Rocha will enter an environment unseen by humans.

Prestige was given a rare opportunity to learn more from Rocha about his endeavours, and how being a Rolex Awards Laureate will aid him in charting new territories.

Your relationship with the ocean was ignited at a very young age. Apart from growing up near the sea in Brazil, what is it about the ocean that holds such a special allure for you?