His work has been widely exhibited, including the Kunsthaus Bregenz, Austria; The Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University, New York; the Gesellschaft für Aktuelle Kunst, Bremen, Germany; and the 48th Venice Biennale.

He is the subject and author of several published catalogues, among them, Reading Karl Marx (London: Book Works, 2001),[1] Ortsprache—Local Language (Kunsthaus Bregenz, 1998),[2] and Rainer Ganahl: Educational Complex (Vienna: Generali Foundation, 1997).

[3] From 1986 until 1991, Ganahl studied at the University of Applied Arts Vienna (Peter Weibel) and the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (Nam June Paik).

In his Imported-Reading Seminars held from 1995 onward, the group study of theoretical works from specific countries were documented on video.

[6] Besides his photographic work and media art, Ganahl has been painting throughout his career, often integrating current news coverage into his pictures.