Mat ou brillant ? Mardi 8 Novembre 2005  - 22H30 Par Natacha Wolinski Réalisation: Angélique Tibau La photo à pleins volumes Une émission sur l'histoire du livre de photographie, à l'occasion de la sortie de l'ouvrage de Martin Parr et Gerry Badger: "Le livre de photographie: une histoire" aux éditions Phaidon. • "Mat ou brillant ?" est une émission mensuelle diffusée dans Surpris par la nuit autour du 10 du mois. > Fréquences de France-Culture: Consulter le lien

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* About the book While the history of photography is a well-established canon, much less critical attention has been directed at the phenomenon of the photobook, which for many photographers is perhaps the most significant vehicle for the display of their work and the communication of their vision to a mass audience. In the first of two volumes, both co-edited by Martin Parr and Gerry Badger, The Photobook provides a comprehensive overview of the development of the photobook, from its inception at the dawn of photography in the early nineteenth century through to the radical Japanese photobooks of the 1960s and 70s, by way of the modernist and propaganda books of the 1930s and 40s. In his introduction, Badger argues that the photobook is one of the most significant photographic genres due to the extent of its distribution and level of availability, and contests the traditional notion that the history of photography is best represented by the original print. This study provides an important corrective to the traditional history of photography. The selection of photographers made by Badger and Parr challenges the popular canon, and their survey of the history of the photobook reveals a secret web of influence and interrelationships between photographers and photographic movements around the world. The book is divided into a series of thematic and broadly chronological chapters, each featuring a general introductory text providing background information and highlighting the dominant political and artistic influences on the photobook in the period, followed by more detailed discussion of the individual photobooks. The chapter texts are followed by spreads and images from over 200 books, which provide the central means of telling the history of the photobook. Chosen by Parr and Badger, these illustrations show around 200 of the most artistically and culturally important photobooks in three dimensions, with the cover or jacket and a selection of spreads from the book shown. Volume One also features an illuminating and provocative introduction, ‘The Photobook: Between the Film and the Novel’ by Badger, which is accompanied by a preface written by Parr. * About the authors Martin Parr’s celebrated photographic work bridges the divide between art and documentary photography. His studies of the idiosyncrasies of mass culture and consumerism around the world, his innovative imagery, and his prolific output have placed him firmly at the forefront of contemporary art. Parr is a member of the international photo agency Magnum, and has recently branched out into film-making. He is a world authority on photobooks. Gerry Badger is a photo historian and critic. He writes and lectures on photography regularly and has curated a number of exhibitions, including ‘The Photographer as Printmaker’ for the Arts Council of Great Britain and ‘Through the Looking Glass: Post-war British Photography’ for the Barbican Arts Centre, London. His published books include Collecting Photography (2003) and books on Eugène Atget and Chris Killip (both published by Phaidon). He is currently completing a major book on the Berlin work of the American photographer, John Gossage. Authors’ Residence: Bristol and London respectively