Martin Parr 2006 Book cover for Martin Parr, 2006, Mexico, (Chris Boot)
Book cover Amazon - USA Martin Parr's first new thematic series of photographs to be published in book form since Think of England (in 2000) this is his journey into and beyond the cliches of Mexico. While we are at once in recognizable territory many of the series visual themes will be familiar to Parr fans, including colourful and mocking close ups of food, hats, signs and souvenirs, garishly shot with medical efficiency there are new motifs here too. For instance, the series includes portraits of Mexican working men sporting baseball caps with local and American logos; what is surprising for Parr is how he grips us with straight records of human faces, with photographer and subject both in the act of mutual contemplation. Parr's Mexico photographs are typically comic, balancing affection and rudeness towards his subjects, while a darker underlying theme as in much of Parr's later work is the corruption of authentic cultural forms by global consumer culture. An essential purchase for Parr's many fans.
