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Chow Yun-fat and Cherie Chung film a scene in Tsim Sha Tsui for The Eighth Happiness in a photograph shot by Canadian Greg Girard. A collection of his 1980s Hong Kong film set photos will be presented in “Greg Girard: Hong Kong Made Me” at M+ museum. Photo: M+/Greg Girard
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Photographs that pay homage to Hong Kong cinema heyday paired with post-punk band at M+ museum event

  • Vancouver-born Canadian photographer Greg Girard shot Hong Kong cinema luminaries such as Wong Kar-wai and Chow Yun-fat on film sets in the 1980s
  • Hong Kong’s M+ museum of visual culture is presenting a selection of these images together with a performance by post-punk band Gong Gong Gong in May
Photography
Ashlyn Chak
Ashlyn Chak
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Canadian photographer Greg Girard is paying homage to his beloved Hong Kong in May with a one-day live event comprising a photography exhibition that also includes a performance by an experimental post-punk band with a loyal following in the city.

“Greg Girard: Hong Kong Made Me,” which takes place on May 11 at the M+ museum of visual culture in West Kowloon, showcases Girard’s photos, many taken in the 1980s and 1990s, alongside archival materials from other Hong Kong film-set photographers.

The collection recalls the heyday of the city’s film industry and highlights the often-overlooked artistry of still photography in film production.

Girard, who will give opening remarks at the May 11 show, first visited Hong Kong in 1974 as a 19-year-old. He was instantly “hooked” on the “mesmerising city”, he told the Post in a 2017 interview and, after roaming the region, and making regular visits to the city, he settled in Hong Kong in 1982.
A Hong Kong cafe scene captured by Canadian photographer Greg Girard’ and featured in his M+ show. Photo: M+/Greg Girard
During the 1970s and 80s, Girard documented Hong Kong’s social and urban landscape, publishing photo books dedicated to them, such as City of Darkness: Life in Kowloon Walled City in 1993. Much later, he published more of them in HK:PM, Hong Kong Night Life 1974-1989 in 2017.
He documented many film sets in the 1980s, a glamorous era of Hong Kong cinema. Outside of film production, he is known as the creator of one of the rarer photographic collections depicting Hong Kong’s transformation over the decades.

The M+ curatorial team has “always been fascinated by the cinematic quality of Girard’s photography”, says assistant curator Savannah Shiu.

“Each of his photographs testifies of a particular interest in time. By capturing the decisive moment of a found situation or staged scene, he invites viewers to imagine what could have happened before and after.”

Shiu says that “bringing these scenes to life in a sequence, in combination with sound and film extracts”, aligned with the vision of both Girard and the museum’s curatorial team.

Wong Kar-wai and cinematographer Christopher Doyle sit on a ledge in Central in 1990s Hong Kong in an image captured by Canadian photographer Greg Girard. Photo: M+/Greg Girard

Girard, 69, now lives in Vancouver, the city of his birth, but maintains a strong bond with the city that “made” him an esteemed photographer.

Shiu notes that the event will showcase the veteran photographer’s collection of film-related images he took while working part-time as an editorial photographer. Among the familiar film-industry figures featured are directors Wong Kar-wai and Ann Hui On-wah, cinematographer Christopher Doyle and actors Chow Yun-fat and Cherie Chung Chor-hung.

“Hong Kong Made Me” also features a performance by experimental post-punk band Gong Gong Gong, which was formed in Beijing in 2015 by Hong Kong-born vocalist-bassist Tom Ng and Montreal-born guitarist Joshua Frank.

An action scene from a Hong Kong film shoot captured by Vancouver-born photographer Greg Girard. Photo: Photo: M+/Greg Girard

Drawing inspiration from African blues and techno to create eclectic sounds with Cantonese lyrics, the duo – who performed at Hong Kong’s Clockenflap music festival in December 2023 – have a loyal following among the city’s indie music fans.

“It was Girard’s suggestion [to pick the band],” Shiu says. “We liked the idea due to Gong Gong Gong’s own strong engagement with the city and experimental take on post-punk music that is evocative of Hong Kong cinema, as if they were telling a story with secret agents, action and car-chasing scenes.”

Shiu adds that the photographer and the band have been working in close collaboration on the project, and that it will be an exceptional sensory experience for those who enjoy old Hong Kong vibes and alternative music.

“Greg Girard: Hong Kong Made Me” May 11, 4pm. Grand Staircase, M+ Museum, 38 Museum Drive, West Kowloon Cultural District. Standard tickets HK$120, available on mplus.org.hk.

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