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| Frozen in time: Rare early images of the Himalayas from Italian pioneer | Frozen in time: Rare early images of the Himalayas from Italian pioneer |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Sella captured peaks in the Karakoram Mountain Range, over a century ago | |
| Vittorio Sella was a pioneering Italian photographer whose work at the turn of the 20th Century shaped both mountain photography and mountaineering history. | Vittorio Sella was a pioneering Italian photographer whose work at the turn of the 20th Century shaped both mountain photography and mountaineering history. |
| His rare images of the Himalayas remain some of the most iconic ever captured. | His rare images of the Himalayas remain some of the most iconic ever captured. |
| A new ongoing show in the Indian capital, Delhi, called Vittorio Sella: Photographer in the Himalaya brings to life the breathtaking grandeur of the Himalayas through his lens. | A new ongoing show in the Indian capital, Delhi, called Vittorio Sella: Photographer in the Himalaya brings to life the breathtaking grandeur of the Himalayas through his lens. |
| Curated by renowned British explorer and author Hugh Thomson and organised by Delhi Art Gallery (DAG), the show is likely one of the largest collection of Sella's Indian views. | Curated by renowned British explorer and author Hugh Thomson and organised by Delhi Art Gallery (DAG), the show is likely one of the largest collection of Sella's Indian views. |
| It features some of the earliest high-altitude photographs of Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest mountain, and K2, the world's second-tallest mountain, captured over a century ago. | It features some of the earliest high-altitude photographs of Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest mountain, and K2, the world's second-tallest mountain, captured over a century ago. |
| A game of polo being played in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, 1909 | A game of polo being played in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, 1909 |
| Born in Biella, a town known for its wool trade in northern Italy, Sella (1859–1943) made his first ascents in the nearby Alps. | |
| "Throughout his career Sella made use of his skills in engineering and chemistry that the wool mills and his father had taught him," says Thomson. | "Throughout his career Sella made use of his skills in engineering and chemistry that the wool mills and his father had taught him," says Thomson. |
| By his twenties, he had mastered complex photographic techniques like the collodion process, enabling him to develop large-format glass plates under harsh conditions. | By his twenties, he had mastered complex photographic techniques like the collodion process, enabling him to develop large-format glass plates under harsh conditions. |
| His panoramic images, crafted with technical perfection, earned worldwide acclaim. | His panoramic images, crafted with technical perfection, earned worldwide acclaim. |
| A view of Darjeeling and Kanchenjunga, 1889 | A view of Darjeeling and Kanchenjunga, 1889 |
| Sella's Himalayan journey began in 1899 when he joined British explorer Douglas Freshfield on an expedition circumnavigating Kanchenjunga. | Sella's Himalayan journey began in 1899 when he joined British explorer Douglas Freshfield on an expedition circumnavigating Kanchenjunga. |
| Any circumnavigation of the mountain also involved an incursion into Nepal, which was also a closed kingdom. | Any circumnavigation of the mountain also involved an incursion into Nepal, which was also a closed kingdom. |
| While the team's climbing ambitions were thwarted by relentless rain, Sella seized the opportunity to capture pristine snow-dusted peaks. He experimented restlessly with technology, trying out telephoto pictures of Kanchenjunga. His images transported viewers to a world untouched by time. | While the team's climbing ambitions were thwarted by relentless rain, Sella seized the opportunity to capture pristine snow-dusted peaks. He experimented restlessly with technology, trying out telephoto pictures of Kanchenjunga. His images transported viewers to a world untouched by time. |
| Sunset at Broad Peak in Karakoram mountain range, 1909 | Sunset at Broad Peak in Karakoram mountain range, 1909 |
| The K2 pictured from the west by Sella | The K2 pictured from the west by Sella |
| A camp en route to the Karakoram Himalayas, 1909 | A camp en route to the Karakoram Himalayas, 1909 |
| A decade later, Sella reached new heights - both literally and artistically - on a 1909 expedition to K2 with the Duke of the Abruzzi. | A decade later, Sella reached new heights - both literally and artistically - on a 1909 expedition to K2 with the Duke of the Abruzzi. |
| His photographs of the world's most difficult mountain stand as a testament to his skill and resilience. Carrying a camera system weighing nearly 30kg, Sella crisscrossed treacherous landscapes, creating images that defined mountain photography. | His photographs of the world's most difficult mountain stand as a testament to his skill and resilience. Carrying a camera system weighing nearly 30kg, Sella crisscrossed treacherous landscapes, creating images that defined mountain photography. |
| Jim Curran, author of K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain, calls Sella "possibly the greatest mountain photographer... his name [is] synonymous with technical perfection and aesthetic refinement". | Jim Curran, author of K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain, calls Sella "possibly the greatest mountain photographer... his name [is] synonymous with technical perfection and aesthetic refinement". |
| A cane bridge in north Sikkim en route to Kanchenjunga, 1899 | A cane bridge in north Sikkim en route to Kanchenjunga, 1899 |
| A rope bridge on the Pumah river in the Karakoram mountain range, 1909 | A rope bridge on the Pumah river in the Karakoram mountain range, 1909 |
| Sella was known for his extraordinary toughness, traversing the Alps at remarkable speed despite carrying heavy photographic gear. | Sella was known for his extraordinary toughness, traversing the Alps at remarkable speed despite carrying heavy photographic gear. |
| His makeshift camera harness and boots - three times heavier than modern ones - are preserved at the Photographic Institute in Biella. | His makeshift camera harness and boots - three times heavier than modern ones - are preserved at the Photographic Institute in Biella. |
| His clothing alone weighed over 10kg, while his camera equipment, including a Dallmeyer camera, tripod, and plates, added another 30kg - more than today's airline baggage limits. | His clothing alone weighed over 10kg, while his camera equipment, including a Dallmeyer camera, tripod, and plates, added another 30kg - more than today's airline baggage limits. |
| Himalayan peaks as seen from Kashmir, 1909 | Himalayan peaks as seen from Kashmir, 1909 |
| A Buddhist temple at Tumlong in Sikkim, 1889 | A Buddhist temple at Tumlong in Sikkim, 1889 |
| On the K2 expedition, Sella captured around 250 formal photographs with his Ross & Co camera over four to five months; on Kanchenjunga, about 200, notes Thomson. | On the K2 expedition, Sella captured around 250 formal photographs with his Ross & Co camera over four to five months; on Kanchenjunga, about 200, notes Thomson. |
| "By modern digital standards, this number is nothing extraordinary - and even in the last days of analogue film, it would equate to some eight rolls, what a 1970s photographer could have used in a single morning on a single mountain - but when Sella was photographing, this was a considerable number. | "By modern digital standards, this number is nothing extraordinary - and even in the last days of analogue film, it would equate to some eight rolls, what a 1970s photographer could have used in a single morning on a single mountain - but when Sella was photographing, this was a considerable number. |
| "This meant enormous care and thought was given to each photograph, both because he had relatively few plates he could shoot." | "This meant enormous care and thought was given to each photograph, both because he had relatively few plates he could shoot." |
| The Dras valley below Karah, 1909 | The Dras valley below Karah, 1909 |
| Climbers encamping on a glacier in the Himalayas, 1899 | Climbers encamping on a glacier in the Himalayas, 1899 |
| Years later, the famous mountaineer-photographer Ansel Adams would write that the "purity of Sella's interpretations move the spectator to a religious awe". | Years later, the famous mountaineer-photographer Ansel Adams would write that the "purity of Sella's interpretations move the spectator to a religious awe". |
| High-altitude photography came with risks - many of Sella's most ambitious shots were ruined when humid conditions caused tissue dividers to stick to the negatives. | High-altitude photography came with risks - many of Sella's most ambitious shots were ruined when humid conditions caused tissue dividers to stick to the negatives. |
| Yet those that survived reveal a masterful eye, notes Thomson. | Yet those that survived reveal a masterful eye, notes Thomson. |
| "Sella was one of the first to recognise how tracks in the snow are as much part of the composition as the mountaineers who made them." | "Sella was one of the first to recognise how tracks in the snow are as much part of the composition as the mountaineers who made them." |
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