“How could a skater spinning to earth at dusk, the wonder of a smouldering, skylit puddle, and the Knieval-daring of a skater flying high over ramps coalesce to convey a time without fear? Adolescence in the suburbs, as anywhere, is far from straightforward, so why would its depiction be linear?”
Come get your copy of The First Draft (Driftwood Editions, 2025) and meet photographer Rich Gilligan. The book is an artistic homecoming to the roots of Gilligan’s creative journey that offers a contemplative look at the themes of belonging, identity, and coming of age in suburbia featuring essays by Ken Grant and Sue Rainsford. It revisits Gilligan’s early projects created around Blanchardstown in Dublin which are presented as non-sequential vignettes exploring the complex relationship we often hold with the places that shape us, inviting audiences to experience a dialogue between past and present, where transient moments explore the process of coming of age. Each photograph, whether revisiting past work or presenting fresh perspectives, serves as a personal yet universally resonant meditation on how our environments shape our outlooks and identities.
Bring your skateboard! See you there.
About the Author
Rich Gilligan is a photographer from Dublin, Ireland. He began his work making his own zines as a teenager and then went on to work as a skateboard photographer for a variety of publications worldwide. He now shoots a wide range of commissioned projects while continuing to pursue his own personal work. Until recently Gilligan was based in New York, but in 2020 he relocated to Ireland where he continues to work on projects locally and internationally. Previous photographic publications include DIY (1980 Editions, 2012), Rituals (AAD, 2014), Burnside (Driftwood, 2014), DIY (Prestel, 2014), Town (The Salvage Press, 2018), and All Sorts Of Impossible Things (Driftwood Editions, 2022). His work has been published in iD, T Magazine, The New York Times, Vogue, Port, The New Yorker, Source, and Time.
Head Hi in the City is an Archtober pop up shop at Center for Architecture spotlighting recently released architecture publications selected to celebrate the festival theme of Shared Spaces and a commitment to deepening our relationships with the places we inhabit. Featuring books and design objects for sale, as well as weekly events including book launches, talks, and the New York Architecture & Design Book Club gathering, Head Hi in the City is an extension of Head Hi, New York’s premiere architecture and design-focused bookstore and cultural organization bridging architecture, design, and art via projects, reading materials, and public programming.
Head Hi
