“A big part of my work ethic is to show things that people might overlook”: British photographer Martin Parr sits down for an interview with AFP, after the opening of his exhibition “Déjà View” at the Magnum Gallery in Paris.

The exhibition pairs images from the photographer’s book of the same name with images from The Anonymous Project, which has been collecting amateur photographs from around the world for several decades. The exhibition runs until November 12.

In my photography there’s a bit of humour, there’s some fun, but there’s also some sadness. So I think the two go together, you know, I mean, is life good or bad? You know, it’s the yin/yang. I’m trying to illustrate the contradictions of modern life through my photography. You know, it’s my chance to sort of try and explain how I’m relating to the world out here.

Martin Parr

Magnum Photos, in partnership with the Anonymous Project, presents a new exhibition at its Paris Gallery based on the book, Déjà View, by Martin Parr and Lee Shulman, published by Textuel in 2021. Footage © AFP