An exhibition to mark the centenary of Mallory and Irvine’s tragic disappearance on Everest will open at a Cumbrian gallery this week.
Everest Revisited reflects on 100 years of inspiration and human endeavour through art, photography and rare artefacts and will open at Rheged, near Penrith from Friday, December 6.
Using original artwork, photography, film, and rarely seen artefacts, the exhibition will bring to life lesser-known stories, the personalities of past and present that have made Everest a household name and some of the little known and untold Cumbrian connections.
Curators say it is the UK’s most significant mountain-focused exhibition since the National Mountaineering Exhibition, 20 years ago.
The exhibition delves into pivotal moments of Everest exploration, from early mapping expeditions to pioneering climbs, advancements in mountaineering technology and the vital role of the Sherpa community.
The exhibition is not just about the past, it’s also about today’s mountain communities and explores thought provoking themes of motivation, mountain waste and spirituality.
Rare artefacts will be exhibited, on loan from the Alpine Club, Mountain Heritage Trust, and Royal Geographical Society and some of families of the key people.
Among them, Mallory’s boot and goggles found on Everest and the original invoice for the sock, embroidered with AC Irvine, discovered in September this year by a National Geographic team.
A selection of tents and mountain clothing will sit alongside Irvine’s ice axe found mysteriously on its own in 1933 high on the mountain, and Wakefield’s camera and video recorder – each with their own Everest story to share.
Highlights will include artwork by Howard Somervell from Kendal and William Heaton Cooper from Grasmere, Bentley Beetham’s iconic photographs and historic images from the Wakefield and Norton Family. Contemporary art and sculpture also feature by British artists such as Alexander Heaton, Peter Kettle, Susan Dobson, Derek Eland, Julian Cooper, Andy Parkin, Ruth Charlton and Rob Fraser.
A specially curated area has been dedicated to today’s leading Nepalese painters and renowned photographer Mani Lama.
Rheged’s Gallery curator Claire Harrison said: “This must be one of our most ambitious exhibitions we’ve developed and curated to date.
“We hope to honour the bravery and creativity of the climbers, artists, and storytellers who shaped Everest’s history, and bring out the Cumbrian links to Everest and showcase mountain art in all its forms.”
The idea for the Everest Revisited exhibition was put forward by local Alpinist, writer and film maker, John Porter, also founder of the Kendal Mountain Festival.
He said: “Over the past 100 years, the fascination with Everest has in part, been a driver for a massive growth in mountain tourism worldwide. We are very aware of the impacts here in Cumbria, and now we turn to what Everest has meant to Nepal.
“The exhibition, where we have created an authentic voice for adventure and exploration, will reflect not only the extraordinary Everest mountaineers of the 1920s and the decades that followed, but also looks at the positive initiatives happening in Nepal today.”
Accompanying Everest Revisited is a programme of talks, films, and Q&A sessions in Rheged’s Cinema, offering a deeper insight into the history and stories of those who have tackled the peak.
In the new year, highlights include a film screening of Everest Revisited 1924–2024 with Krish Thapa, SAS mountaineer & spiritual guide, a talk with Julie Summers on Sandy Irvine’s life and a Q&A with legendary filmmaker and Keith Partridge following his film, Bonington: Mountaineer and presentation, Life Behind the Lens and Stephen Venables – the first Briton to summit Everest without Oxygen.
Everest Revisited is open daily at Rheged’s Gallery from Friday, December 6 until Sunday February 23. It is £5 to enter with 16 & under free.
