London photographer Rob Greig launches his first solo exhibition

For the past two decades, commercial and editorial portrait photographer Rob Greig – a regular JR contributor – has committed the who’s who of popular culture and beyond to the page. From Tracey Emin to Tim Minchin, David Attenborough to David Cameron, Neil Gaiman to Michael Palin, and now he’s bringing some of his favourite shots together in his first solo exhibition.

*L-R: Mike Leigh; Mark Rylance © Rob Greig*

“Editorial portraits are rarely produced with an exhibition in mind,” says Greig, “as layouts, deadlines and the accompanying text are paramount. However, this process is probably more important to my work than I was aware. The story behind each image provides me with the tools I use for every commission.”

Since moving to London in 1999, after graduating from the Bournemouth and Poole College of Art and Design, Greig’s work has gone international, appearing worldwide in newspapers, magazines and on the occasional book jacket and album cover. He was also the staff photographer at Time Out magazine for over a decade.

*L-R: Sophie Herxheimer; Daisy Abboudi © Rob Greig*

Revisiting, which opens at Imperial College London’s Blyth Gallery this Wednesday, is a retrospective of the portaits Greig has taken over the past 20 years. “I have returned to locations, people and subjects,” he explains. “I’ve enjoyed rediscovering previously discarded images or references and seeing their relevance to my current work and confidence as a photographer.”

There will also be a lunchtime walk and talk of the exhibition with the man himself on Wednesday 18 January (1.30-2.30pm).

By Danielle Goldstein

Revisiting runs Wednesday 11 January – Thursday 2 February. Blyth Gallery, Imperial College, SW7 2AZ. imperial.ac.uk/music-and-arts/visual-arts/blyth-gallery