And so, up in Orkney, the Pier Arts Centre, which has been open to visitors for the past few weeks, finally gets to put on its much delayed Spring show. Martin Parr's Think of Scotland is a round-up of some of the photographer's best Scottish photos, showing elements of life as we live it, from remote post boxes to tarrings and featherings. First shown in Aberdeen, and in partnership with Aberdeen Art Gallery and Magnum, these images are the result of 25 years of visits north of the border.
Born in Surrey in 1952, Parr studied photography at Manchester Polytechnic in the early 1970s and was President of Magnum Photos between 2013-17. A social documentarist, Parr's view is an idiosyncratic and a fond one, filled with humour and his own unique viewpoint. The Scottish photos come from all over the country. “All the things you associate with Scotland, in terms of clichés, are things that I like,” he once said. His work explores national characteristics as a way of finding out how valid these cultural symbols are. The colours are gaudy, the images sometimes grotesque, full of contradictions which are left unresolved. His subject is people and everyday life, whether he is photographing Bristol Pride or tourists taking selfies from Venice to India. The Orkney images are taken from events in the islands' agricultural calendar, scenes which will be familiar to many, yet seen through a different lens – if you'll excuse the pun.
Martin Parr, Pier Arts Centre, Victoria Street, Stromness, Orkney, 01856 850209 www.pierartscentre.com Until Nov 7, Thurs - Sat,10am - 5pm
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