#27, 2015

Martin Parr was a documentary photographer whose projects offered a comically unflinching, anthropological study of the British class system. His distinctive visual style employed close-ups of everyday life and saturated color to accentuate the realism of his photographs. Parr's seminal series The Last Resort (1982–85) was a searing exploration of working-class families holidaying at a British seaside resort. The exhibition was heralded as a turning point in British documentary photography for its innovative style and use of color, at a time when the genre was predominantly monochrome. He cited the influence of American photographers Joel Meyerowitz and William Eggleston, both renowned for their pioneering use of color photography.
In 1989, Parr presented his next major body of work, The Cost of Living, a study of an increasingly prosperous middle class during the Thatcher era. Focusing primarily on southwest England, the series chronicled the lives of a growing social class through everyday activities such as garden parties, shopping, and community events. For his subsequent project, Small World, Parr traveled internationally to explore the phenomenon of mass tourism, creating a deeply satirical critique of the banality of commercialized travel.
Throughout his career, Martin Parr held academic posts as Professor of Photography at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki and at the University of Wales. He also worked extensively as a curator, collector, and producer of television documentaries. (Artist website)