Vittorio Sella was an Italian pioneering photographer whose work in the early 20th century shaped the history of mountain photography and mountaineering. His rare photographs of the Himalayas remain some of the most iconic works to this day, capturing the grandeur and challenge of the peaks.
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02-11, 2025Currently, an exhibition titled "Vittorio Sella: Photographer of the Himalayas" is being held in Delhi, the capital of India, bringing the breathtaking and magnificent scenery of the Himalayas to the public through his lens. Curated by renowned British explorer and writer Hugh Thomson and organized by the Delhi Art Gallery (DAG), this is likely the largest collection of Sella's photographs of the Indian landscape ever assembled.
The exhibition features some of the earliest high-altitude photographs, including those of Kangchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak, and K2, the world's second-highest peak, taken more than a century ago. "Sella made full use of the skills in engineering and chemistry that he had learned from the wool mill and his father throughout his career," Thomson stated, highlighting Sella's unique combination of artistic and technical abilities.
Sella was born in Biella, a town in northern Italy famous for its wool trade (1859-1930), and completed his first climbs in the nearby Alps. By his twenties, he had mastered complex photographic techniques such as the collodion process, enabling him to develop large-format glass negatives in harsh conditions. His panoramic photographs earned him worldwide acclaim for their exquisite technical skill.
Sella's Himalayan journey began in 1899 when he joined British explorer Douglas Freshfield's expedition around Kangchenjunga. Any circumnavigation of this peak involved entering Nepal, which was then a closed kingdom. Although the team's climbing ambitions were thwarted by persistent rain, Sella seized the opportunity to photograph the pristine, snow-capped mountains. He constantly experimented with new technologies, attempting to take telephoto shots of Kangchenjunga, showcasing his innovative spirit. His photographs transport viewers to a world untouched by time, preserving the pristine beauty of the Himalayas.
A decade later, Sella reached new heights—both literally and artistically—during his 1909 expedition to K2 with the Duke of Abruzzi. His photographs of this most challenging mountain in the world are a testament to his skill and resilience. Jim Curran, author of "K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain," called Sella "probably the greatest mountain photographer...his name is synonymous with technical perfection and aesthetic refinement."
Sella was known for his extraordinary tenacity, traversing the Alps at remarkable speed despite carrying heavy photographic equipment. During the K2 expedition, he took approximately 250 formal photographs with his Ross company camera over four to five months; at Kangchenjunga, he took approximately 200, Thomson noted. Sella's makeshift camera strap and boots—three times heavier than modern ones—are preserved at the photography institute in Biella, offering a tangible connection to his remarkable achievements.
Thomson noted that high-altitude photography came with risks—many of Sella's most ambitious photographs were ruined by damp conditions causing tissue paper separators to stick to the negatives. However, those that survived reveal the eye of a master. "Sella was one of the first to recognize that the traces on the snow were as much a part of the composition as the mountaineers," demonstrating his keen artistic sensibility and understanding of the mountain landscape.
