Martin Parr has been photographing people affected by floods in Vietnam for Oxfam. There’s some really interesting shots and the accompanying text certainly helps to bring the slideshow to life.
“The danger with NGO photography is that it has the potential to all look the same. Flicking through the weekend magazines, the viewer is going to flip through quickly when they see more black and white pictures of people starving. My job is to try and do something different, that hopefully might get people to actually read it.”
Wouldn’t it be great though to actually hear these people’s stories?
Interestingly the head of media at Oxfam, Sam Barrett (@samdbarratt) is asking for feedback on Twitter.
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I just spent a great 30 minutes looking through the pictures Martin Parr took for Oxfam on the Guardian website.
Wonderful to see images that aren’t all death and destruction. ‘What would you save?’ is a really interesting angle – and a conversation we have all probably had at some point – so one we can all relate to. It creates a connection between the folks in the pics and the viewers.
And I’ve got to agree with benjamin – I was crying out to actually HEAR the stories. Another incredible opportunity missed!
Same here, these images are great. I was initially worried when I heard Martin was in the region taking images, thought they’d end up very typically Parrworld and missing the point, but as with everything Mr Parr, he’s proved me so wrong.
This is the kind of things Oxfam is interested in: real stories.
I am sure there are many dramatic images to show after a flood, but the campaign has preferred to focus on the people, the individual reality of each one, not falling in the silly empty portraits I am used to see.
Here every person is shown in his/her place of work, house, street… the routine, the normality, after the flood, is extremely poweful and give us the authentic picture of what is going on in Vietnam right now.
I personally think that NGO’s should use local photographers for all their campaigns. However, Martin Parr has spotted on.
PS: I am also missing the audio to reinforce even more the stories.
I’m not so convinced, I didn’t think there was enough of Martin Parr in them. If I didn’t know they were by him, I’d never have guessed. I preferred the shots Rankin took for Oxfam earlier this year:
http://www.adevelopingstory.org/2009/cheka-kidogo-laugh-a-little
The idea’s a good one though, and it’s really important to get a more diverse group of people to tell these stories, photographers, writers and film makers who come from outwith the world of international development, particularly ones who come from developing countries themselves.
meh
I really like the concept behind the images – great way of humanising people – I have to say I find the resulting photos mediocre at best.
I guess I can see why Parr was chosen, well other than being a big famous photographer who pulls in the crowds, that is. He takes a different approach to a subject than just shooting misery pics, which have been overdone. But something’s definitely lacking here for me, and that’s even before we get to the absence of their voices. Now, after seeing how NGO campaigns can be done (some Human Rights Watch stuff, some MSF stuff, the Oxfam Bangladesh stuff that ran recently in the Guardian and others), for me a lot of work that is purely pictures and captions now tends to fall short. That’s a shame
Bit of an odd one this…on one hand the pictures, to me, are poor photographically, but on the other, strong in resonance. Criticising Martin’s pics is an old sport though, so I won’t bother…Using Martin has paid off for Oxfam because his name ensured a good show, not an easy thing for a snapper these days. I do wonder how much they must have paid him though….for his day rate you could hire most any other photographer and also a skilled audio person to really bolster such work and approach, and still have change for a return flight to Copenhagen.
Dave White brings up a good “financial” point- but if it ultimately means more money in Oxfam coffers for those who need it most, fine. Hiring name “celebrity” photographers like Parr may pay off in the short term, until the novelty passes. I’d like to think that it’s the quality and originality of the photography and presentation that will ultimately triumph, but if the occasional “gimmick” can also be integrated to lure in the dollars, Euros and pounds for the cause- have at it…
Personally I think the photos are just very straight, but they do tell me that flooding is just a part of everyday life as opposed to the apocalyptic photos we tend to see of events that may or may not have anything to do with climate change.
I would love to hear both Martin’s and the voices of the people he photographs. The internet allows this possibility. Oxfam do some great comms work but I’m not sure they’ve got to grips with documentary audio anf the possibilities it presents. They wouldn’t be the only ones.
I also would love to hear voices… especially of the people portrayed. The photos are simple and could have been taken by anyone but the concept works for me. it shows what is common in all of us… resilience… the strength that we all have to pick ourselves up and go on with life. It’s the first time I’m coming into contact with Martin Parr’s work… What I can tell from this body of work is that he made the subjects comfortable around him… probably depicting them in a way they would depict themselves.
And just to add OXFAM have done some great work from Bangladesh recently, which you can read about here:
http://www.adevelopingstory.org/2009/oxfam-and-the-guardian-launch-interactive-documentary-on-the-effects-of-climate-change-in-banglad
A good debate here and I agree we missed a trick on the audio front (will check in the office as to why). I was very excited about the prospect of Martin travelling and he really bent his back into it (he’d never having agreed to do something like this before). Would Oxfam have got 8 pages in the FT mag and pieces in the Guardian, Independent and global syndication that is coming through without him? He put a lot of thought into this and I think he enjoyed it. He’s very different character from Danziger who went to Ethiopia with us and was bloody brilliant as a photographer, spokesperson and supporter or Rankin who has become a curator, ambassador and networker for Congo (more from him from DRC coming in early 2010 which I think is even better than last year). Sounds obvious, but different people approach things differently. Photography offers a far more creative approach to story telling stories on such issues in a far more interesting and compelling way than the usual INGO trudge…Who else would you like to see go where to photograph what? Always interested in ideas…
Brilliant, another example how PJ’s VJ’s, media communication departments in NGO’s should be doing more to promote story rather than sensationalism. There is a fine line. James Nachtwey, Martin Parr and a few others are setting a good benchmark to aim for. The emphasis on forward planning and not to be just air-dropped into zones to photograph ‘bang bang’ or ‘flies on face’, it doesn’t promote long term development through the work. It only achieves short term financial help for these people.