In an effort to draw attention to the growing problem of waste management in the Mount Everest region, Nepali artists have created art installations from decades worth of rubbish left behind by climbers.
The world’s highest peak has had its fair share of visitors. Thousands of people trek to Base Camp per year, while almost 4,000 people have climbed Mount Everest since the first successful summit in 1953. It goes without saying—where humans go, rubbish is likely to follow and when you are battling the elements and the thin air scaling up 8,848 metres of mountain, finding a sustainable way to dispose of loose cords is not necessarily top priority.
To highlight the issue of waste management in this region, fifteen Nepali artists recently constructed sculptures using rubbish left behind on the mountain by climbers. Nepali artist collective Da Mind Tree worked with the Everest Summiteers Association to obtain the rubbish. Using 1.5 tonnes of materials such as empty oxygen bottles, gas canisters, food cans, broken tent poles, ropes, crampons, boots, plates, plastic bags and even remnants of a helicopter which crashed in 1974, the artists created 75 sculptures, including one of a yak and another of Ganesh.
The general code of conduct when it comes to trash management on the trails and up the mountain goes along the lines of “whatever you bring with you, you take with you when you leave”, but this isn’t strictly adhered to. Climbers must pay a hefty deposit of 4,000 USD to the government prior to their climb which is refunded once they return and can prove that they have brought their rubbish with them. Despite this, monitoring of waste disposal on the mountain has proven extremely difficult and estimates state that approximately 50 tonnes of trash litter Mount Everest.
The artists behind this exhibition aim to demonstrate that rubbish can be upcycled in all sorts of imaginative and useful ways as well as underscore how the issue of rubbish disposal affects the region. The exhibition is currently on show at Hotel Shangrila in Kathmandu and runs until Thursday 29 November. You can also check out images of the sculptures via Da Mind Tree’s Facebook page.
Author: Anna Rees/ RESET editorial