Exhibition using film to reframe the 1920s Everest expeditions returns

This week, the Society’s exhibition, Everest through the lens, returns to the Pavilion. The exhibition originally opened in 2022, marking the centenary of the first European expeditions to Mount Everest in the 1920s. The exhibition is back by popular demand, giving the public another chance to witness the expeditionary imagery, artefacts and films until 18 March. 

At the heart of the exhibition are the films that Captain John Noel produced of the 1922 and 1924 expeditions. Using both research on the films and the films themselves as a lens through which to reframe the story of the expeditions, the exhibition explores some of the lesser-known elements of the expeditions, including the role of the Indigenous and regional labour forces who supported the climbing teams. The exhibition also explores the role local intermediaries and porters played in making the filming on location possible, and the context and uses of expeditionary films today. 

The exhibition draws on research undertaken by Dr Jan Faull using the Society’s Everest archives, which was supported through the AHRC-funded Collaborative Doctoral Programme. 

New to the exhibition is a display of a selection of Ruth Mallory’s letters and a range of platinum prints from the 1921 expedition in a new small size. The Society’s book Everest24 is also on sale during the exhibition.

Everest through the lens is open to all between 10.00am and 5.00pm Monday to Friday and is free to visit.