An Antarctic Expedition with a Difference

In February 2023, photographer ELAINE LIM from White Room Studio, together with her daughter, enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Antarctica. We talk to Elaine about what was behind this expedition.

Tell us about your daughter and her combined interest in music and photography. 

My daughter Hillary is a 12-year-old pianist, currently in Grade 6 at SJII. As a music lover myself, I introduced her to the piano when she was only three. At age eight, she gave a piano recital to children on a remote Indonesian island, Bunaken. Performing over the ocean at the end of a long jetty was an eye-opening experience, and she loved sharing her love for music with children – it became a kind of a cultural exchange. This was especially so when she gave her second piano recital, this time on a sandbank of a local Maldivian island, Fenfushi.

Hillary has a strong interest in ocean conservation, and it led to her doing a photojournalistic exploration into the lives of the people of Bunaken in 2018, touching on the socioeconomic issues created by tourism and pollution. She photographed the different faces of the island and the people who made Bunaken proud with their dedication to conservation.

How did this lead to being chosen for the Antarctica expedition? 

We shared these recitals and the photo-journal on Hillary’s YouTube channel, which was created to showcase some of her piano music. Michael Aw, the production director and brainchild behind the Antarctic Climate Expedition (ACE), saw her piano recitals online, and invited both of us to participate in the expedition. Michael saw in Hillary a representation of the newest generation amongst the 120 ambassadors. (She was the youngest of the group.)