Since the early 2000s, Canadian artist Jordan King has held onto a collection of Polaroids taken with friends, at nightclubs, onstage, and with her circle of creative collaborators between 1999 and 2004. She found a renewed interest in the format in 2020 upon inheriting from a friend some of the personal effects of legendary 1970s–80s trans drag performer International Chrysis, who was connected to King via a New York City apartment they both at one time occupied, though three decades apart. In March 2020, King shot a series of Polaroids with long-time friend Greg Manuel in this apartment, paying homage to Chrysis and the legacy that she left behind after her untimely death in 1990. Revisiting the series for this unique installation on a billboard in Toronto, King reconsiders the intimacy and instantaneity captured by the unique photographic format, recontextualized within the public sphere.

Presented by CONTACT in partnership with Gallery 44. Supported by PATTISON Outdoor Advertising

Jordan King shares more work from this series in this expanded photo essay.

Curated by Sameen Mahboubi

• Jordan King is a Canadian multi-disciplinary artist, curator and writer. Her practice is rooted in performance, archival research and intergenerational dialogue. She completed a Master of Fine Arts degree at OCAD University in 2024 with a focus on documentary film and multimedia documentation of underground queer performance.

• Sameen Mahboubi works as the Curator of Exhibitions at Gallery 44 and is an archivist for Michael Snow Studio. He co-founded Hearth, runs Silverfish Magazine and is on the board of directors of Art Metropole.