© Gilbert Garcin, Le funambule (The tightrope walker)

For the last two decades the whimsical photographs of French artist Gilbert Garcin have been widely exhibited and collected around the world. Now in his eighties Garcin will have his first exhibition in Australia at The Australian Centre for Photography during the Head On Photo Festival from 5th May – 11th June.

At 65, after retiring from managing his Marseille lamp factory, Garcin decided to take up photography. He entered work into a competition and won first prize, which consisted of a week-long workshop under the direction of Pascal Dolemieux during the festival Rencontres internationales in Arles. This was the beginning of a new and brilliant career. 

Since then Garcin has been creating his unique works. Armed with bits of meccano, string, small building blocks and props he uses glue, scissors and his camera to create miniscule models which he illuminates with artificial light and stages different acts in his small indoor theatre.

Always using his small cut out self portrait dressed in a non-descript tan overcoat, he poses “as an ordinary Mr. Everybody”, in his surreal and humorous scenarios which invite us to ponder such philosophical quandaries as time, solitude and the weight of existence.

Official Opening Event on Thrusday 5 May, 6pm

Presented by Head On Foundation in association with the ACP and the French Consulate General