Photojournalism...                                                                                                                            Back >>> 

Martin Parr

Parr is a Magnum photographer known for capturing images of everyday urban life. Frequently using close-ups and garishly saturated colours, Parr provides a satirical view of the eccentricities of urban life.

His early collection book, The Last Resort, is arguably his most famous and influential, featuring well-known scenes from the seaside town of New Brighton, Merseyside. At times an unflattering portrait of 1980s British holidaymakers, it cemented Parr's style and reputation, for better or worse.

The collection is accused of being a 'patronizing and exploitative view of the working class' by art critic David Lee. Magnum veteran Phillip Jones Griffiths denounced the collection as 'meaningless,' and requiring an 'anti-nausea pill' to view.

Others however defend it as being 'unflinching in its gaze and heightened in its atmosphere, but neither cynical nor exploitative.'

Parr's latest collection, Life's a Beach returns to the same subject, but turns its gaze worldwide to capture beach-life around the globe, finding out that some experiences are universal.

Jo-Anne McArthur 

This Canadian documentary photojournalist has been working for over ten years, photographing a wide range of subjects, including portraits, food and events. She also offers educational presentations at elementary to university levels. A big part of her work is her We Animals project, which presents images of the interactions between humans and other animals. Her passion for animal welfare informs her photography practice of presenting the animal's point of view; something we intend to do in our documentary film, A Dog's World.

For example, these picture shows the view from a greyhound transport cage, and racing box:

Other of her animal photos are highly evocative, something we need to try to emulate in our film. This shot of a caged rescue monkey literally reaches out to the viewer, creating an instant connection with them. The emotion of this dog photograph is also heightened, both with colour choice, and explanatory caption:

'Not a nice way for an SPCA to keep its dogs. Terrified, she                                                                                                                                             urinated on herself every time a person walked by. India, 2008.'