Greg Girard

Acclaimed Canadian photographer Greg Girard receives his first-ever career survey this summer. Girard gained recognition working for media outlets while also developing independent projects focused on the social and physical transformations of urban centres, especially in Asia. Travelling extensively, he spent considerable time in Hong Kong from 1982 through 1998, where he photographed the Kowloon Walled City for what became the influential publication City of Darkness: Life in Kowloon Walled City (1993), later reissued as City of Darkness Revisited (2014). Girard was based in Shanghai between 1998 and 2011, and is renowned for his images of that city’s rapid, and at times violent, metamorphosis through the beginning of the 21st century. Girard has also produced a number of photobooks, including Phantom Shanghai (2007), which The Independent newspaper cited as one the top 10 photographic books ever produced, as well as Under Vancouver, 1972 - 1982 (2017), which is now in its fourth printing. His photographs have appeared in a wide range of internationally circulating publications, such as National Geographic, the New York Times MagazineTimeFortune, and the Sunday Times Magazine (UK).

Order Greg Girard: Photographs 1972–2026 here

Order Greg Girard: Photographs 1972–2026 Special Edition here

Order Greg Girard, Residents #147 Miezhu Lu, Shanghai here

Learn More

Globe and Mail: The Big Picture

Macleans: The Making of Global Vancouver

Montecristo: Five Decades Through the Lens of Photographer Greg Girard

 

Curated by Reid Shier and Elliott Ramsey

Generously supported by
The Andrew Gruft Fund for Photography Exhibitions
Demetrios Babalos
Claudia Beck
Pauline and Bernie Hadley-Beauregard
Jane Irwin and Ross Hill
The Lind Family
Maureen and Larry Lunn
Karen Nishi and Michael Bruce
Diana and Mark Sawers
George Seslija and Dr. Marla Kiess
Timothy and Jane Taylor
Bruno Wall
John and Jennifer Webb
Wild Island Foundation
Bruce Munro Wright, OBC

Banner Image: Greg Girard, Camaro in Alley, 1981.

Greg Girard, Man with Cigarette, 1974
Greg Girard, Man with Cigarette, 1974
Greg Girard, Dancing, 1976
Greg Girard, Dancing, 1976
Greg Girard - Platform Conductor
Greg Girard, Platform Conductor, 1976
Greg Girard, Kowloon Walled City, from SE Corner, 1987
Greg Girard, Kowloon Walled City, from SE Corner, 1987
Greg Girard, Qingdao Airport, 1995
Greg Girard, Qingdao Airport, 1995
Greg Girard, Man in Red Sweater Fishing, West Lake, 2010
Greg Girard, Man in Red Sweater Fishing, West Lake, 2010
Greg Girard, Richardson Grain Terminal, 2013
Greg Girard, Richardson Grain Terminal, 2013

Deckchair Cinema V: The Return Of Theremin Man

Catch a live set by Theremin Man before our screening of RAD.
Film starts at 9:00pm
Admission to Deckchair Cinema is by a suggested donation of $10-$20,…

Deckchair Cinema V: Rad

Set in the quiet logging town of Cochrane, Cru Jones lives and breathes BMX. When the elite Helltrack race rolls into town, backed by big money sponsors and…

Deckchair Cinema V: Phen Ray

Catch a live set by Phen Ray before our screening of Audience Choice screening of Enter the Dragon or When We Were Kings.
Concession opens and music starts…

Deckchair Cinema V Audience Choice: Muhammad Ali Or...

Who is the greatest fighter of all time: Muhammad Ali or Bruce Lee? All summer long, everyone who attends Deckchair Cinema will be invited to vote for our…

Meet Me At The Gallery: Seniors Program

Happening in September
Join us for anInteractive workshop led by Avideh Saadatpajouh, a new media artist, researcher, and world-builder working across…

Kids First

Come get creative on the first Saturday and Sunday of the month with a day of art-making and fun at The Polygon Gallery. The projects are geared towards…

Traces Opening Celebration

Join The Polygon on Thursday, September 24 at 7:00pm for the Catherine Blackburn + Jeneen Frei Njootli: Traces Opening Celebration.
Doors at 6:30pm
Remarks…