Spitzbergen: Cold Beauty / Kalte Schönheit / Koele Schoonheid / Kalt Skjønhett

About this book

Language: Multilingual introduction in English, German, Dutch, and Norwegian

The author has accumulated a large treasure of images through 17 stays in Spitsbergen, mostly over several months, between 1997 and 2010. It has been an idea for a long time to combine a selection to produce a photo book. Now it has finally happened, and the result is there. 152 colour images show all the diverse, beautiful sides of Spitsbergen: from Bear Island in the south to the Seven Islands in the far north, from the driftwood-covered beaches to the highest, glaciated mountains, from whales over seals, walruses and polar bears to the abundant birdlife, from the fascinating ice to the small, colourful beauty of arctic flowers, lichens and stones. Some impressions of the history complete the collection.

This photo book features the images prominently, as they speak for themselves. Each one is accompanied by a little map that shows where the photo has been taken. A short introductory text in 4 languages (German, English, Dutch, Norwegian) soon gives way to the photos. Comprehensive explanatory text including a lot of general information about Spitsbergen with its landscape, wildlife etc. can be found elsewhere (see the guidebook Spitsbergen-Svalbard).

The photos show impressions of the beauty and diversity of arctic nature with its landscapes and scenery, the wildlife, flowers, and light. By showing and documenting this, at the same time they inform about many of Spitsbergen’s different faces, from the sea to mountain peaks and through different seasons from the (near) dark period to the midnight sun. The photos invite to enjoy and to dream. They may inspire new plans or wake up pleasant memories. They were taken during ship-based journeys as well as skiing and hiking adventures. Out of a total of 160 pages, 152 pages are dedicated to the colour photos. The choice of the landscape format for the A5-size pages follows the proportions so often displayed by arctic scenery with its endless horizons.

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