Hello there, my name is Chris O, designer at underscore.
The design team at underscore recently attended a talk at the Tate Modern presented by British documentary photographer, Martin Parr and art critic, Gerry Badger. They discussed their recent co-edited photobook series called, “The Photobook: A History”, the third volume from their very popular Phaidon series.
Martin Parr; is a highly acclaimed photographer whose work bridges the divide between art and documentary photography. His studies of the idiosyncrasies of mass culture and consumerism around the world and prolific output have placed him firmly at the forefront of contemporary art.
Gerry Badger is a photo historian, architect and critic that lectures on photography. He has curated a number of exhibitions and his published books include, “Collecting Photography” (2003) and monographs on John Gossage and Stephen Shore, as well as Phaidon’s 55c on Chris Killip (2001). In 2007 he published “The Genius of Photography”, the book of the BBC television series with the same name. His recent book, “The Pleasures of Good Photographs” in 2010; an anthology of essays that was awarded the 2011 Infinity Writers’ award from the International Centre of Photography, New York.
Badger and Parr’s collective knowledge of a wide range of worldly subjects was impressive; ranging from Italian books documenting the propaganda surrounding fascism to Ricardo Cases’s “Paloma al Aire”; a photobook documenting pigeon racing in Spain.
A contentious subject that drew a lot of debate was the argument whether print is dead in our digital age. With printed media sales showing a decrease in sales of papers, magazines, books as well as a decrease in advertising revenue; the answer would instinctively be to say no.
However there is one area that still presents stability for print as a stable medium. Books and magazines about design, illustration and photography continual to hold their sales margin as critics argue this medium enhances the user’s experience. Whether print sales for design related books and magazines continues to remain stable or begins to become digitally focussed remains to be seen.
Tate Modern talks present an interesting avenue for designers and those interested in art subjects to expose themselves to different ideas and subjects and is a must do for those wishing to challenge their knowledge.