SVALBARD EXPEDITION: Chasing the Light at 79 degrees North

Date:  2008

Expedition Leader:  Rena Bass Forman

Purpose:  To document through photographs, last light before the onset of polar night.

Where:  The world's nothern most settlement, Longyearbyen and Ny Alesund, Svalbard

Description:

In the fall of 2008, Rena Bass Forman and her family carried Wings WorldQuest Flag #19 to the extreme northern archipelago of Svalbard to catch the last light before the onset of polar night. Forman's goal was to to create silver gelatin prints of this austere and stark landscape.

SVALBARD, EXTREME NORTH
Svalbard is an archipelago, which lies between Latitude 74 degrees and 81 degrees North and Longitude 10 degrees and 35 degrees East. Less than 400 miles from the North Pole, more than 60% of Svalbard is covered with dramatic glaciers. It is the northernmost settlement on the planet, and  home to seals, polar bears, foxes, reindeer, and numerous migratory bird species. The mountainous island Spitsbergen, with its deeply indented coastline, is the largest of the three inhabited islands in the archipelago.

A PHOTOGRAPHER FOLLOWS THE LIGHT
Chasing light is never easy and requires determination, patience, and a willingness to remain outside in bone-chilling cold, and on the watch at all times. Forman knew that the sun would never reach higher than 10 – 12 degrees above the horizon, and that the actual hours of light would decrease rapidly with each passing day.  What she did not anticipate were the high winds, raging seas, rain, icy sleet, and fog that persisted twelve days in a row.

Forman used the International Arctic Research Base for shelter. The Research Base is located in a unique arctic fjord environment, with calving glaciers, sandy beaches, bird and plant sanctuaries, diverse geology, and no pollution. It is a pristine environment for research in the natural sciences, and an excellent home base for photographic adventures.

After endless rains when the snow finally arrived and the landscape was transformed, Forman worked tirelessly to capture images of this incredible land. On her very last night she saw the sun for the first time in thirty days, as it set over the snow-covered valley of Bjorndalen into the Arctic Ocean.

EXPEDITION ADVICE
Forman says “I think it is very important when planning a trip like this to give great time and consideration to all the details that you can possibly control, and then realize that one must leave home with a lot of courage and no expectations because arctic travel in particular is fraught with unpredictable and varied situations. Traveling as a family has its advantages as we all work well to support one another and each bring different skills, knowledge, and point of view to the group.”

“One feels humbled to be in an environment as vast and beautiful (and freezing) as Svalbard, where one must constantly be on the watch for polar bears. We are mere visitors and must tread lightly.”  Rena Bass Forman