Bonnie Yap is a photographer on a mission to raise awareness about global warming with her latest exhibition
Riding on the previous success of her solo photo exhibition in 2014 – The Jewel of the Arctic, which raised RM79,000 for Assunta Hospital’s Social Welfare Outpatient Programme, local photographer Bonnie Yap is now turning her lens to its literal polar opposite: The Antartica. The exhibition, titled “Through the Eyes of South Georgia – Watch, Respect, Capture” will comprise of over 20 photographs – taken at the South Georgia islands in Falkland – from the 1st to 30th of June 2016 at Traders Hotel Kuala Lumpur; in conjunction with World Environment Day on the 5th of June.
When questioned about her initial inspiration behind her freezing adventures, her answer was simple, “I wanted to see polar bears!” Having been to both ends of the globe, she can now speak fondly of the indigenous eskimos of the North Pole and happily elaborate on the harsh and inhabitable conditions of the South. Differences aside, both share incredibly breathtaking and fiercely beautiful sights of nature and wildlife; and this was essentially what she wanted to share with the Malaysian public.
Today, her aesthetic reasons have evolved into something more as both trips have exposed her to the devastating effects global warming has had on the landscape and fauna there. “Until you witness it with your own eyes, it will not feel real to you,” she said. And with that, she felt that it was her duty to best capture the sights and emotions of that very moment so that she might raise awareness. “I hope that it will motivate and inspire others to think about their actions before they do anything that will be detrimental to the environment,” she said.
