Viva Gibbs: Melbourne Suburbs & Intimate Portraits – In Pictures
The work of Viva Jillian Gibbs, a photographer who quietly documented the lives of ordinary people in inner-suburban Melbourne for nearly two decades, is experiencing a resurgence. An exhibition, On the street where I live: Viva Gibb’s portrait of North and West Melbourne
, opened on , and will run through at the City of Melbourne’s Art and Heritage Collection. The show draws from a donation of over 200 photographs made to the Melbourne Art Trust in 2025 by Gibbs’ children, Sybil Gibb and Rupert Duffy.
Gibbs’ project, spanning from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, wasn’t about seeking out the extraordinary. Instead, she focused on the everyday, capturing tender observations of everyday moments
– children playing, neighbors chatting, and the quiet dignity of aging – in the neighborhoods around North and West Melbourne. Her photographs, often taken with a Rolleiflex camera, possess a timeless quality, offering a unique visual record of a period of significant social and urban change in the city.
Curated by Savannah Smith, who works with the City of Melbourne’s Art and Heritage Collection, the exhibition re-introduces the work of an artist whose photographs have largely been unseen for thirty years. Smith, whose background includes positions at the National Galleries of Scotland, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, and Australian Galleries, holds a master’s degree in art curatorship from the University of Melbourne and an honors degree in art history from the University of St Andrews.
The photographs aren’t posed or staged; they feel like glimpses into real life, offering a sense of intimacy and connection with the subjects. Gibbs’ approach was methodical. She would walk the streets of her neighborhood, camera in hand, observing and waiting for the right moment. This dedication to capturing authentic moments is central to the appeal of her work, offering a counterpoint to more polished or sensationalized forms of photography.
Born in 1924 and passing away in 2018, Gibbs wasn’t formally trained as a photographer, but developed her skills through self-study and relentless practice. Her work is described as jewel-like portraits
set within a distinctive inner-suburban landscape. The exhibition highlights her strong social and political convictions, and how they informed her sympathetic portrait of the community during a transformative period in Melbourne’s history.
Among the subjects captured in Gibbs’ photographs are Billy Flowers at 44 Hawke Street (1981), Lillee feeding Pirate on Victoria Street (1982), Frank the barber on Errol Street (1980), Jimmy at a wholesale flower shop on Victoria Street (1977), Dorothy at George Joseph’s gun shop on Victoria Street (1983), and Maureen, aged 90, on Hawke Street (1987). Other portraits include Willie, a resident of a Hawke Street squat (1985), Jean collecting bottles outside 8 Hawke Street (1986), Giuseppe Lanteri, known as The Boss
, at Don Camillo Cafe (1981), a butcher on Errol Street (1980), Lindsay Williams on Hawke Street (1985), Maria Lanteri, or Signora
, at Don Camillo Cafe (1980), Colin Cheng outside his home on Capel Street (1980), the owner of Centenary Bakery on Victoria Street (1978), and Elsie on Stanley Street (1982).
The photographs offer a glimpse into a Melbourne that is rapidly changing. They document a community and a way of life that is, in many ways, disappearing. Gibbs’ work isn’t about making grand statements about society; it’s about recognizing the beauty and significance in the mundane. It’s about seeing the humanity in the everyday. The exhibition serves as a reminder of the importance of documenting the lives of ordinary people, and of preserving the visual record of our changing cities.
The rediscovery of Gibbs’ work prompts a question: how did such a dedicated chronicler of Australian life become relatively unknown during her lifetime? The current exhibition and the accompanying attention suggest a growing appreciation for her unique contribution to Australian photography and a recognition of the value of her intimate and insightful portraits.