Antarctica Comes to Auckland This August

Antarctica Comes to Auckland This August in an Immersive New Exhibition Based Around Jane Ussher’s Iconic ‘Still Life’ Series

Step ‘inside’ the historic huts of Antarctic explorers Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton to relive a time of extraordinary polar exploration in a new exhibition based around the work of New Zealand photographer Jane Ussher. In partnership with the Antarctic Heritage Trust, ‘Still Life: Inside the Antarctic Huts of Scott and Shackleton’ opens at Auckland Museum on 27 August 2014.

The exhibition is based on Jane’s evocative series of images of Scott and Shackleton's historic expedition bases. These iconic structures, now cared for by the Antarctic Heritage Trust, are associated with some of the most inspirational and harrowing stories in polar history.

Jane says that when documenting the huts she was aware that for many people it would be as close as they would ever come to being there. “Photographing the huts was an intense and extraordinary experience. The knowledge of the tragic outcome of Scott’s expedition, and the extreme levels of bravery and sacrifice they needed to survive were ever-present. In all their gloom, their intimacy and their stillness, I hope the photographs stand as a record of something special and lasting that took place in the white world of Antarctica.”

Standing at the heart of the exhibition is a unique audiovisual experience created by Jane, with support from the Antarctic Heritage Trust and the Christchurch City Council for NZ IceFest 2012. The timed sensory experience allows visitors to step inside a specially designed cube to become immersed through Jane’s images in the landscape, isolation and lives left behind by these heroic early explorers.

Visitors will also encounter rarely seen Antarctic objects from the Museum’s collections which further help to tell the stories of what it was like to live, work, and play in the earth’s southern-most continent.

The exhibition is supported by a series of Smart Talks with Antarctic experts and coincides with the Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research (SCAR) conference in Auckland (25 August – 28 August) and NZ IceFest 2014 in Christchurch (26 September – 12 October).

‘Still Life: Inside the Antarctic Huts of Scott and Shackleton’

Dates: 27 August – 5 October

Admission: Free with Museum entry

Website: www.aucklandmuseum.com/still-life
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