Martin Parr reveals his Death Row Dinner
And it doesn't look like this! But what would the Real Food photographer choose for his last supper?
Anyone who's leafed through Martin Parr's new book of food photography, Real Food, might have had to view some of the images through protective fingers. Some of the foodstuffs look like they could induce a coronary just by looking at them.
Could the Magnum Photos president, actually, maybe, secretly enjoy eating any of this stuff? Rest assured: he most certainly does not. In fact at the Barbican the other week Martin let us in on some of the secrets of his own at-home culinary expertise as well as what he would request as a "death row dinner".
As it turns out, Martin's last supper would consist of the following: "I think I would have something like a nice bit of fish. Some asparagus, jersey potatoes, some cauliflower followed by some Cheddar strawberries. And the fish would be Turbot or John Dory. Possibly some broad beans as well!"
And what does Parr, whose daughter Ellen runs the successful Art of Dining pop up like to cook when he's at home?
"I’ll tell you, what I like doing is meat and two veg. I love to cook chicken with gravy. And doing the vegetables and making sure the stuffing is good and making sure it all comes together. It’s all to do with the timing and getting everything absolutely precise. I often do that on Sundays. I guess that’s my signature dish. Along with fried fish. My partner is a great cook but that’s the one thing I can do better than her!"
Buy Real Food here, Boring Postcards here and browse all our other books with Martin Parr here. And for greater insight into Martin Parr’s curatorial skills take a look at his three-volume history of the photobook here.