Martin Parr is a chronicler of our age. At first glance, his photographs seem exaggerated or even grotesque. The motifs he chooses are strange, the colours are garish and the perspectives are unusual. Parr’s term for the overwhelming power of published images is “propaganda”. He counters this propaganda with his own chosen weapons: criticism, seduction and humour.
Encouraged by his grandfather George Parr, himself a keen amateur photographer, Martin Parr studied photography at Manchester Polytechnic, from 1970 to 1973. Since that time, he has developed an international reputation for his innovative imagery, his oblique approach to social documentary, and his input to photographic culture within the UK and abroad.
In 1994 he became a full member of Magnum Photographic Corporation. In 2002 the Barbican Art Gallery and the National Media Museum initiated a large retrospective of his work, which toured Europe for the next 5 years. He was appointed Professor of Photography in 2004 at The University of Wales Newport campus. In 2008 Martin Parr was guest curator at New York Photo Festival and curator at the Brighton Photo Biennial that took place in October 2010. In 2018 Martin Parr was invited by Tate Modern to join the famous Artists Room, where his work will be exhibited permanently. Martin Parr has published over 70 books of his own work and edited another 30 exhibitions.