The Sherry B. Ortner photographs relating to Sherpa research comprise photographs made during Ortner's fieldwork among the Sherpa communities of Nepal. They include photos from her doctoral research in the 1960s, as well as later research in the 1970s and 1990. Images show people, places, and events among the Sherpa communities in the Mt. Everest region. Also included to a lesser degree are photographs in and around Kathmandu.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into four series:
Series 1. Sherpa research, 1966-1968
Series 2. Sherpa research and film expedition, 1976
Series 3. Sherpa research, 1979
Series 4. Sherpa research, 1990
Biographical / Historical:
Sherry B. Ortner (b. 1941) is a cultural anthropologist and Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at UCLA. She received her PhD from the University of Chicago in 1970 after carrying out extensive fieldwork among the Sherpas of Nepal from 1966-1968, looking at religion, politics, and Himalayan mountaineering. She continued research among the Sherpas in 1976, 1979, and 1990, publishing several important works including Life and Death on Mt. Everest: Sherpas and Himalayan Mountaineering (1999) which won the J.I. Stanley prize for best anthropology book in 2004.
Ortner's later work includes research relating to meanings of "class," where she carried out fieldwork among her own high school graduating class, and the relationship between American culture and Hollywood films.
Provenance:
The photographs were donated by Sherry B. Ortner in 2018.
Restrictions:
The Sherry B. Orner photographs relating to Sherpa research collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
