City Gallery celebrates the extraordinary career of photographer Andrew Chapman with The Green Bus – a major exhibition spanning five decades of images that capture the people, places and moments that have shaped Melbourne since 1971.
Curated by Chapman, The Green Bus brings together 55 photographs from across 55 years, revealing an evolving portrait of Melbourne through the lens of one of Australia’s most respected documentary photographers.
From everyday encounters to defining moments in Melbourne’s social history, Chapman’s photographs explore the streets, spaces and communities that continue to define Melbourne’s identity.
The exhibition’s title refers to the green buses that once travelled from Elsternwick into the city – the route that carried a young Chapman into Melbourne as he began exploring the streets with his camera.
Those early journeys sparked a lifelong fascination with the city, one that has resulted in one of Australia’s most significant photographic archives documenting urban life.
“Spending nearly a lifetime behind my cameras, some of these long distant images I have taken I can almost still touch, whilst others are cloudier than a bowl of soup,” said Chapman.
“For today we inhabit a post truth society where much is not quite as it seems, but I’d like to believe that what I have witnessed bears honest testimony to the past. For it is in this current AI-fuelled, social media driven landscape, the importance of being able to cling to and rely on these grains of truth has never been more important.”
Rather than looking back through nostalgia, Chapman’s work presents an honest and deeply human account of a city in constant transformation. His photographs reveal changing streetscapes, shifting communities and the enduring rituals of public life, while quietly asking audiences to consider how cities remember themselves.
The exhibition follows the recent acquisition of a significant portion of Chapman’s photographic archive by the City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection.
Lord Mayor Nick Reece said the exhibition tells the story of the people, places and moments behind Melbourne’s past. “These remarkable images, beautifully captured by Andrew, offer a vivid snapshot of Melbourne through time,” said the Lord Mayor.
“They are both iconic and deeply evocative, taking us on a journey through the evolution of our city. Preserved for future generations, this extraordinary visual record helps ensure the stories, people and places that have shaped Melbourne remain accessible and celebrated for years to come.”
The Green Bus: Andrew Chapman’s 55-year photographic journey through the streets of Melbourne offers audiences the opportunity to step aboard an unforgettable visual journey through Melbourne’s past and present, discovering the stories found in the city’s streets through the lens of one of its most dedicated observers.
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue featuring a new essay by Melbourne-based curator Stella Loftus-Hills, whose work with Australian photography spans more than eighteen years across Australia’s public gallery sector.
Born in Melbourne, Andrew Chapman OAM studied photography at Prahran College before beginning his career as a news photographer in 1978. For almost six decades he has documented Australian politics, rural communities, the wool industry, organ transplantation, the power industry and everyday Australian life.
His photographs have appeared widely in newspapers, magazines and digital publications, and have been exhibited throughout Australia, the USA and France. His work is held in major public collections, and he is the author of ten photographic books.
The Green Bus: Andrew Chapman’s 55-year photographic journey through the streets of Melbourne is on display at City Gallery – Melbourne Town Hall until 19 February 2027. Entry is free! For more information, visit: www.melbourne.vic.gov.au for details.
Images: Andrew Chapman, Chatting at the rear of the Green Bus, early 1970s, gelatin silver print, City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection, © Andrew Chapman Photography | Andrew Chapman, People sitting on top of a shop awning on Swanston Street watching the Moomba Parade, corner of Swanston and Little Collins Streets, March 1987, gelatin silver print, City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection, © Andrew Chapman Photography | Andrew Chapman, Chief Fire Officer Laurie Lavelle controls a fire incident, Melbourne, April 1980, gelatin silver print, City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection, © Andrew Chapman Photography | Andrew Chapman, Youths wait to protest against Malcolm Fraser, Bourke Street, 1975, gelatin silver print, City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection, © Andrew Chapman Photography