Omar Al Gurg is a man of many talents. Over a few years, the Emirati designer has built a strong design practice, curated locally focused exhibitions and developed a unique creative language that has made him a force in the regional creative scene. Now, he is embarking on an exciting new chapter – pun intended. “I didn’t really know I was going to write a book when I went on the hike,” the designer says, explaining that his latest foray into publishing was largely a byproduct of his personal desire to document and learn about Mount Kilimanjaro, a Unesco World Heritage Site. “I remember trying to do some research online about the mountain and not being able to find very many visual references,” he confides.
Omar Al Gurg’s debut publication features over 160 photos
His debut publication, a photography book titled Kilimanjaro: Everyman’s Mountain, chronicles Al Gurg’s four-day ascent and two-day descent of Africa’s highest peak during a trip to Tanzania in 2021. Published by Rizzoli, it features over 160 photos showcasing the mountain’s five distinct climate zones while offering a look into the designer’s personal journey. “I documented the hike in as much detail as possible, focusing on everything that interested me,” he explains. “I learnt a lot from this documentation and ended up with more than a thousand photographs. I then thought it would be a shame to keep them in my archives, so I compiled them into this book.”
An avid traveller with an appetite for adventure, Al Gurg undertook the climb with minimal physical preparation, battling frigid nights, altitude sickness and mental fatigue in what he describes as a transformative inner journey. “This documentation of Mount Kilimanjaro also raises awareness about the environmental impacts that humans create and the unintentional damage we cause. It speaks about the environment’s resilience and how it can regenerate without human intervention in many cases,” he shares, adding that this realisation is “a pleasant and humbling reminder” that we may not play as big a role as we think.