Vittorio Sella Exhibition 2025
“Vittorio Sella: Photographer in the Himalaya,” a stunning exhibition at Delhi’s Bikaner House, is a tribute to the man and pioneer Italian artist who immortalized the spirit of the world’s highest mountains well over a century ago. This exhibition, which continued till Feb. 14 and was curated by Hugh Thomson and presented by DAG (Delhi Art Gallery), is not simply a collection of photographs; it is a journey through time, a glimpse into a world simultaneously familiar and utterly transformed.
Vittorio Sella Photography
Sella’s story is one of passion persistence and technical prowess. Born in Biella, Italy, he trained in photography, mastering the complex collodion process. This enabled him to develop large-format glass plates in the most extreme conditions imaginable. His technical mastery, combined with an innate artistic eye, enabled him to create images of extraordinary beauty and power.
Vittorio Sella Mountain Expeditions
The show presents a striking selection of Sella’s work centred on his expeditions to the Indian Himalayas. Highlighting the stunning composition are his early images of Kanchenjunga, the world’s third-highest mountain. Rather than simply scenic vistas, these pictures — taken during an expedition to the Swiss Alps in 1899 with the climber Douglas Freshfield — are portraits of a mountain, memorializing its majesty in all its snow-dusted splendour. While the expedition was plagued by relentless rain, Sella’s lens discovered moments of sublime beauty. He played with telephoto lenses, making distant peaks closer to the viewer, gazing at their grandeur in a way no one had before.
Vittorio Sella Alpine Photography
Sella went on to join the Duke of the Abruzzi’s K2 expedition, to the “Savage Mountain,” a decade later. This expedition tested Sella’s skills and endurance to the fullest. Consider that teaching glaciers and icy slopes with a 30kg camera system — a Dallmeyer camera, tripod, and heavy glass plates — and 10kg of clothes. Yet he soldiered on, shooting around 250 photos over a four- to five-month span. Such photographs of K2 are iconic; they shape our vision of this mountain of mountains. They aren’t just photographs, they are experiences, expressing fully the daunting size and difficulty of climbing K2.
The show also provides a window into Sella’s process. Sella “was among the first to understand that the tracks snipping the snow are as much part of the composition as the mountaineers who left them”, writes Thomson. It’s this attention to detail, this understanding of the interplay between human presence in — and intrusiveness on — the natural world that makes Sella’s work resonate. His photos are not just still pictures, they are narratives that tell tales of exploration, resilience and the lasting influence of nature.
Pictures were, however, scarce because the sheer number of photographs Sella took — about 200 on the Kanchenjunga expedition and 250 on K2 — is remarkable given the technology of the time. “By modern digital standards, this number is nothing extraordinary … but when Sella was photographing, this was a considerable number,” Thomson writes. Every photograph unfolded with preparatory planning, careful execution , and deep reverence for the subject matter.
Vittorio Sella Historical Archives
The exhibition is a tribute to Sella’s lasting legacy. Ansel Adams, a colossus of 20th-century photography, understood the profound resonance of Sella’s work, noting that the “purity of Sella’s interpretations moves the spectator to a religious awe.” One can feel this “religious awe” in looking at Sella’s photographs. These colloquies are not simply photographs, they are calls to consider the divine sublime, to touch the unadulterated gorgeousness of our natural world.
“Vittorio Sella: Photographer in the Himalayas” is more than a photography show; it’s a cultural and historical happening. It gives a unique glimpse of the past, allowing us a view of the Himalayas through the eyes of a real pioneer in his field. It is curated extremely well, giving footholds into Sella’s life and work. The print showcase is gorgeous; each image lets you soak up the technical skill applied to your creative vision. This Is a Must-See Exhibition for Anyone Interested in Photography, Mountaineering, or the History of Exploration. It’s a reminder of art’s ability to take us from their worlds to ours; the beauty and grandeur of their worlds. Head there now, live the Sella’s Himalayas magic.
Contributor
