1.4 - patagonia chronicles

this project is a collection of thoughts, memories and reflections.

i had the privilege of traveling through Patagonia, at the very South tip of the world.

these photos will try to tell the story of that trip

these are the three friends I shared those moments with: Vic, Pelle and Marta

side note: I love rocks

our days were filled

with crisp air

with picturesque mountain peaks

and the scent of spring flowers

the wind was windying

the sun was sunning

the trees were treeing

I tried to listen to the mountains...

while the snow was slowly melting

which triggered in me reflections about global warming

sometimes hopeful,

but honestly mostly apocalyptic

we then decided to follow the path of the melting ice,

down to the valley

and found a lake that definetely thought he was a sea

looking at the water, Pelle said:

'this is the water that will flood my country in a few years'

then I met Perito Moreno,

in all its majesty and pride

sudden loud roars filled the air

as pieces of ice repeatedly fell into the water

the glacier war screaming.

crying.

or maybe laughing.

I don’t know

hearing the glacier roaring was a really shacking experience.

i wasn't sure what to do.

it happens every spring, after all. the glacier expands and retracts. it's a natural cycle.

yet, I couldn't help asking my self whether those roars were a cry for help. or a scream of anger for what humans are doing.

pff, maybe that is a condescending thought.

this glacier has been here long before us.

humans are so insignificant in comparison to.

since 2020 the Perito Moreno has been slowly losing volume, for the first time in its history

at the same time, I couldn't help but to see that glacier as a symbol for something bigger.

there it was, seemingly unbothered by humans. magnificent and strong.

my recurring thoughts about the on-going climate catastrophe culminated there, as my eyes melted into tears

what was I even doing there?

i literally flew to Patagonia on an aeroplane

I felt like a fucking hypocrite,

once again

I spend my weeks making sophisticated argument about how capitalism, colonialism and the patriarchy are destroying our planet and our future

I am quick to criticize our oppressive systems and

dream of an abstract and idealistic just world.

but what do I do for actual change?

almost nothing...

I notice that anytime I start thinking about climate change, I run away. it's just so scary. so depressing.

but ultimately, that's also just a reflection of my privilege.

but that also means I can afford to look away.

at the same time, climate change will really affect everyone. in different ways surely, but still everyone

I definitely don't do enough. but what can we do?

how can we not lose hope, as young people living in a decaying world order?

I found refuge in art, once again.

I definetely am a hypocrate. but I am a hopeful hypocrate. maybe a blind one, but still a hopeful one

and is it really our responsibility to fix this? isn't this dreading guilt also something projected onto us by the very systems that created this crisis, in an effort to push the responsibility onto individuals?

this unjust world was built by and for people who look like me. that surely makes me more responsible.

while being in Patagonia I couldn't stop taking photos and filming.

I started writing a script for a short movie. an imaginative dialogue between a young man and a glacier.

sometimes, when I feel like I'm not doing enough, I tell my self that life is made of phases.

my mum always tells me that this is a phase in which I take in, I experience, I learn.

it still feels selfish though.

but maybe sometimes selfish is okay?

I don't know...

looking at that glacier I promised my self I will keep listening and telling stories

yet, still hurting. still melting. still finite.

trying to find a language to describe, capture, somehow freeze what I was seeing

scared that my memories would melt away like ice

she says it's necessary so that one day I can give back and be a part of the solution.

Zizek once said that destruction cycles are just a natural part of our world.