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MARTIN PARR: THE LAST RESORT

MARTIN PARR: THE LAST RESORT

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Such sad news to learn of the death of Martin on Saturday December 6th. 

Somehow I think I believed that Martin would always be there. He had the most extraordinary drive and energy, and such an enthusiasm for everything he was involved in. He was such a force of nature. And yet he always had time for others, time to look at the work of other photographers and give advice, time to chat, time to let anyone and everyone take selfies with him. And, almost always, with a gentleness, a warmth and a smile, no matter what pressure he himself was under.

I knew Martin for over 40 years, probably even longer as I think I first met him briefly in 1976/77 when I exhibited his chimney pots photos at a gallery I ran in Bury, North Manchester. We met again in the mid 1980s, firstly when my wife, Caroline, worked for the DPA which commissioned his 1985 Salford project and then at Cornerhouse, where I was Director, for his 1986 show ‘Connections’. Shortly afterwards our publishing relationship began and over the years we worked on so many books together – and, particularly in those early days, it was all so energising and so exciting.

Martin was immensely loyal, with friendships stretching back so many years. His family, his wife Susie and his daughter Ellen, will be devastated as will all those many friends.

Martin and I were in contact several times over recent months. His energy and his enthusiasm seemed undiminished. We were looking to the future, working on a new, revised edition of ‘Autoportrait’ as well as planning a special 40th anniversary facsimile edition of ‘The Last Resort’, the book that helped to launch his career when he self-published it back in 1986.

Martin has gone but the Foundation he set up remains and his work and his unerring commitment to photography and photographers will live on for many generations.

Thank you for everything Martin.

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When Martin Parr’s The Last Resort was first published and exhibited in 1986 it divided both critics and audiences alike. Some saw it as the ‘finest achievement to date’ of colour photography in Britain whilst others viewed it as ‘an aberration’. With the benefit of hindsight there is little doubt that it transformed documentary photography in Britain and placed Parr amongst the world’s leading photographers. The book is now recognised as a ‘classic’ and copies of the first edition are highly sought after by collectors worldwide. Whilst this new edition keeps the same images and sequence as the original, a new text has been commissioned from Gerry Badger.

Steering a perilous course between objectivity and voyeurism, Parr viewed the decaying holiday resort of New Brighton and its holidaymakers in a way that was new, unique and deeply disturbing. And he did so in colour, something which at the time was seen as revolutionary for documentary work. For some his camera seemed cold and cruel as it followed the working classes desperately pursuing their holiday dreams surrounded by dereliction and decay and wading through the apparently endless detritus of a pollution-ridden consumer society. Others felt it showed an affectionate, humorous and humanistic response from Parr. However it was viewed, it was undoubtedly a sharp, bitter satire of the Britain of the Thatcher years.

Martin Parr is a member of the prestigious MAGNUM photo agency. Internationally recognised as a brilliant satirist of contemporary life he has led the development of British documentary photography with wit, style, and intelligence in a career that boasts numerous publications and exhibitions. His work is in major galleries and museums worldwide. In a new essay Gerry Badger re-examines the work and its impact on British Photography. Recognised as a leading writer on photography, as well as a photographer and a curator, Gerry Badger was co-author, with Martin Parr, of the three volume The Photobook: A History.

ISBN: 978-1-904587-79-8
Hardback, 84 pages
40 colour photographs
245mm x 300mm

READ THE BLOG ABOUT LAST RESORT

ALSO
Autoportrait
Small World
Black Country Stories
Common Sense
From Our House to Your House



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