Everybody Dance Now by Martin Parr
“Photography is perhaps the most democratic form of human expression, second only to dance,” says Martin Parr and he clearly knows. The photographer’s latest book, ‘Everybody Dance Now’ is a collation, spanning 35 years, of people dancing.
See more of Parr's photographs from the book
Parr’s uncanny knack of recording the incidental and making it seem quite monumental is put to brilliant effect on the subject. From gay nightclubs in Brighton, via a Jewish wedding in Finchley, north London to The Gambia, he’s captured the moments when people throw caution to the wind, their hands in the air and start moving to music.
It’s rarely a very gainly, dignified sight – more often than not humorous – but noone can argue that that the feelgood factor isn’t visible on every face in every shot. Even though you can’t hear the music there’s something infectious about the unabashed joy and, seeing photograph after photograph of people united in silly expressions and gangling limbs, the message is loud and clear that the good nature of humanity is irrepressible – when the right song comes on, of course.
Rocket Gallery will have an exhibition of Martin Parr's rarest, oldest and most iconic photographs, taken from books spanning the length of his career, opening on November 11th.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Aindrea Emelife on bringing the Nigerian Pavilion to life at the Venice Biennale 2024
Curator Aindrea Emelife has spearheaded a new wave of contemporary artists at the Venice Biennale’s second-ever Nigerian Pavilion. Here, she talks about what the world needs to learn about African art
By Ugonna-Ora Owoh Published
-
All aboard: Azimut moor a yacht in the heart of Milan
With Azimut's Mooring by the Moon, Michele De Lucchi and AMDL Circle provide insight into the philsophy of the Seadeck Series with an immersive installation at Bagni Misteriosi
By Cristina Kiran Piotti Published
-
A low-energy farmhouse provides a rural escape in North Carolina
This low-energy farmhouse is a net zero architectural re-set for a Californian client, an East Coast relocation for a more engaged and low-key lifestyle
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Martin Parr on chronicling modern passions and Düsseldorf’s hobby-gardeners
The British photographer is the subject of his most comprehensive retrospective to date at NRW-Forum, which includes a new series of portraits of local allotment gardens created especially for the exhibition
By Ilona Marx Published
-
Keep rollin’: Martin Parr, Ron Arad and Paul Smith talk bikes for Brooks’ 150th birthday
By Elly Parsons Last updated
-
Martin Parr’s witty portrayal of British domestic life in the 1990s opens at Beetles & Huxley
By Nick Compton Last updated