Shooting rainforests in order to save them

Business Times 9 Jul 10;

Award-winning photographer Mattias Klum talks to NATALIE KOH about using his images to raise awareness of the depleting tropical jungles, particularly in Borneo

EVER since Mattias Klum first set foot in the rainforests of Borneo in 1988, he knew he was on the cusp of a lifelong love affair.

The acclaimed Swedish photographer and filmmaker was so drawn to its beauty that he spent the next 20 years documenting its rich biodiversity. 'It was my boyhood dream to see rainforest, particularly in Borneo,' he recalls. 'Even its name is magical. Everything about it exudes exoticness and beauty.'

Unfortunately, the love of his life is being threatened as Borneo's rainforests suffer mass deforestation, resulting in the devastation of its rich variety of flora and fauna. Unwilling to sit by and let the inevitable happen, he is now using his skills and position to promote the conservation of Borneo's rainforests.

His current exhibition at the Asian Civilisations Museum, 'Testament of Tebaran: Borneo's Moment of Truth', is just part of his overall plan to bring his cause to a wider audience. In this exhibition you will see searing images of the rainforest - stunning in its beauty as well as its devastation.

Klum, whose advocacy of biodiversity earned him a medal from the King of Sweden and designation as a 2008 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, says that he aims to use his images to create bridges between people's brains and hearts.

'People might know intellectually that deforestation is not okay and that we need to change things, but they are not affected by it emotionally,' he explains. 'I like to use film and photography to evoke emotion, create an impact and help them see how important it really is and how it can affect them.'

His inspiration for the exhibition was Tebaran, a blowpipe hunter and one of the last nomadic Penan headmen living in the rainforest. Klum's admiration for Tebaran is undeniable as he calls him the Martin Luther King of Penan. 'Some people might regard Tebaran as primitive, as something from 1,000 years ago but you will be amazed by his intellectual ability to explain his surroundings to me - he is a very eloquent speaker,' he gushes.

Klum adds that despite the destruction of Tebaran's natural world, the nomadic headman does not blame anyone for it, saying that he understands that other people need to survive as well. Even so, Tebaran, with his extensive knowledge of the plants in the forests, just reminds Klum even more that that as the rainforests disappear, so will he and the other nomads, along with their knowledge of the forests.

What both Tebaran and Klum call for is a rethink of the use of rainforests.

'I've worked in so many countries over 25 years and I've seen so much beauty, yet so much devastation,' Klum says. 'I'm not crazy, I do understand that we need to use nature and we cannot leave it alone, our species needs to use nature to survive. But we need to find a more sustainable way to do it.'

He isn't boasting when he says he has worked in many countries. His passion for natural history along with his talent has taken him on major expeditions to places like Malaysia, Nigeria, Brazil, Thailand, South Africa, Mongolia and Antarctica.

This award-winning photographer is also widely recognised for his environmental efforts and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of WWF - Sweden and fellow of The Linnean Society of London.

Ultimately, his message is that everyone has an important role in conserving biodiversity. He says: 'The worst is to think that something is beyond you. You might even feel depressed because you feel that whatever you do is too small but I feel it's very important to say the opposite. You can always create some sort of change but at different levels in society.'

He brings up the example of his experience of lecturing on deforestation effects on the climate at The United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 alongside UK's former prime minister Tony Blair and Norway's former prime minister Gro Harlem Brundtland.

'When you have a photographer together with two powerful politicians and your agendas go hand in hand, the issue is brought up on different levels and from different perspectives. Then it becomes more interesting for new groups of people. So yes, we can really can make a difference,' he says.

With his works, Klum calls out to everyone to realise the enormity of the problem. He says: 'We have come to a crossroads - we can either go down the road that is not so sustainable or we can create awareness and choose the smarter and more sustainable path.'

The exhibition is a part of this year's Month of Photography Asia and is ongoing until July 19 at the Shaw Foundation Foyer, Asian Civilisations Museum.
Admission is free