Martin Parr's Parisian buzz

Photography Event

The photographer brings his witty, observational works to the French capital.

The chronicler of our age, Martin Parr hits Paris with his witty and unique perspective. Strange motifs and flashy colors that at first glance seem exaggerated or even grotesque but undisputedly maintain an original and incomparable personality."I strongly believe in the democratic nature of photography - in its ability to be both a popular and an artistic medium," says English photographer Martin Parr, member of Magnum Photos since 1994. 


The 40 years time span where Martin Parr provided us with an extraordinary consumer society's depiction from all over the world. Supermarkets, contemporary art fairs, Paris fashion week, Brighton beach, hospitals: whatever they may be, Martin Parr searches for "human stereotypes" and touches the various cultural peculiarities sensitizing our subconscious in a way that only he knows how...For his fourth solo exhibition at Kamel Mennour's Gallery in Paris, he will be showing two series shot in Paris and London, as well as special wallpaper made up of 250 photographs all relating to food. Covering all the walls in situ is his way of reinventing how to present his photographs. 


We the viewers seem to be on a constant discovery when faced with Parr's images. No matter how many times we stare at them in our daily routines, there is always a recognizable reflection of ourselves; a humorous element that makes us laugh at ourselves, with a sense of recognition and release. One can surely admit that when staring at a Martin Parr's picture, you will more than often laugh. The question however remains hard to answer as you cannot tell whether it's a joyous or a bottle sort of laugh. What do you think?


Martin Parr: Food (& other series) runs from November 29th to January 17th at Galerie Kamel Mennour. 



Content Editor    Annie Markitanis