RODRIGO RANGEL DE ALBA “ANTARCTICA” Artist of the Month Issue 11 Light and Paper Magazine.

IN DIALOGUE ANTARCTICA WITH RODRIGO RANGEL DE ALBA

In March 2026, you stood in Antarctica, the last place on Earth you had not yet visited. What did that moment feel like, standing at the edge of the world with nowhere left to go?

It simply did not feel real, and it took couple of days for reality to sink in.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that visiting every single country and continent on earth was even possible.

The journey to Antarctica is not immediate, it requires crossing the ocean, often through uncertainty and isolation. What was the experience

of that voyage like for you?

The most convenient and fastest way to reach Antarctica is from Tierra del Fuego and straight down Drake Passage which is an extremely rough crossing that takes almost 3 days to reach while you are

bouncing nonstop on an exploration vessel.

As the ship moved further away from the familiar world, did you feel a sense of transition, almost like leaving humanity behind, even temporarily?

I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect do to the fact that I was indeed heading to the most remote continent on earth, however, I did feel an incredible sense of excitement that I had never experienced before and I was fully loving every minute of it.

NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS DID I EVER IMAGINE THAT VISITING EVERY SINGLE COUNTRY AND CONTINENT ON EARTH WAS EVEN POSSIBLE.

The voyage itself carries a unique emotional weight, days surrounded only by ocean, distance, and silence. What did those days at sea allow you to reflect on that perhaps the movement of your usual travels never did?

I felt a very strong and indescribable feeling of personal triumph and satisfaction that was simply unreachable in my mind just a few years back.

The MV Hondius later became associated with a hantavirus outbreak. When did you first learn about it, and what was your reaction to knowing you had shared that same confined journey across one of the most remote places on Earth?

I first found out about the terrible news through a couple of friends that I was with on the ship and then the news all over the world.

I never felt concerned about my health but I did feel a very strong sense of sadness while realizing that the vessel that just two months prior to this fatal tragedy had given me one of the most powerful and magnificent experiences of my entire life.

Read Rangel de Alba's full interview at:

LIGHT & PAPER MAGAZINE by LUX Photo Lab.