History professor led international expedition to Tien-Shan Mountains
By IU Today
September 10, 2024
An international team of researchers from the United States, Germany and Kyrgyzstan embarked on an expedition to the Central Tien-Shan, one of the largest and highest mountain ranges in the world, over the summer.
The expedition aspired to visualize environmental changes in the region and aimed to decolonize and de-center the existing narratives of exploration and discoveries in Central Asia. Looking at historic photographs and maps, the expedition team intended to identify what was “seen” and “unseen” by explorers in the Tien-Shan a century ago.
The 2024 expedition was inspired by a research project “Landscapes of Exploration” conducted by Tatiana Saburova, a senior lecturer in the Department of History, and supported by the IU Institute for Digital Arts and Humanities, Robert F. Byrnes Russian and East European Institute and the Office of the Vice President for International Affairs.
Several historic photographs of 1902 were retaken in summer of 2024, and they will be incorporated into Saburova’s digital project “Space and Nature” along with other findings and observations from the expedition. A German filmmaker Patrick Barylla, a team member, is currently working on a documentary “Echoes from the Tien-Shan” about the expedition. First screenings have been scheduled in Germany this fall.