Gilbert Garcin (b. La Ciotat, France, 1929) was originally the owner of a lamp manufacturing company in Marseille, France. Following a workshop during the Rencontres Internationales in Arles, under the direction of Pascal Dolemieux, Garcin, at the age of 65, gave up his business and began his photographic career. His work has been exhibited and collected around the globe, which satisfies his goal of sharing his ideas on life and his perspective on the world with the public at large. In his photographs, Garcin poses as an ordinary ‘Mr. Everybody,’ dressed in an old overcoat. By placing himself, via the character he embodies, in absurd and inextricable situations, he invites us to ponder such philosophical quandaries as time, solitude and the weight of existence.
His work raises a number of universal questions about the meaning of human existence. The crudeness of his technique, combined with the intelligence of his themes, reflects an earnestness that embodies both the character and the creator. In regards to his use of humour, Garcin believes, “The kind of exercise I am doing with my photographs can easily become pompous, pedantic, or overly serious. It’s important to put a layer of humour right away, to let people enter into contact with the subject. Humour for me is not an end in itself, but thank goodness it’s there!”

Gilbert Garcin: Mister G.
Stephen Bulger Gallery, Toronto, Canada
through 25 September 2010

Les premiers pas - First steps, 2003. © Gilbert Garcin, Courtesy Stephen Bulger Gallery