Martin Parr. LATVIA. "Jurmula" 1999

Martin Parr. LATVIA. Beaches. 1999. The name Jurmala (Seashore) encompasses a string of small towns and resorts stretching 20km (12mi) along the coast west of Riga. Tourists are attracted by the beaches, dunes and woodlands, plus museums, galleries, restaurants, pubs and inns. It has the added attraction of being rarely crowded and easy to reach (there are several trains per hour from Riga and a special Jurmala-bound taxi rank in front of Riga's railway station). Since Latvia gained independence, there has been an air of ethnic tension, fuelled by the fact that Russians (who outnumber native Latvians in the capital city Riga) no longer throng to the resorts, leaving derelict hotels and restaurants empty. Soviet-style buildings are strewn along the seafront, with the odd cafe selling stale buns, serving cheap vodka in plastic cups. LATVIA. Jurmula. 1999.

Martin Parr’s image above grants extraordinary insight on my idea of documentary photography where the composition of a photograph can reflect its overall meaning. I was drawn to this photograph because I enjoy Martin Parr’s work in color and this beach photograph intrigued me. In this image, one not only sees a girl on the beach with a rainbow but also a woman crouched down capturing the image. The “rainbow on the beach” is an iconic image to be captured, as many before us and many after us capture such an image. But, what truly sets this image apart from the other “rainbow on the beach” photographs is the inclusion of the crouched woman taking the photograph. That moment adds a layer of information, of documentation, a detail about the location and situation of the moment of the photograph. The crouched woman also separates the photographer from the experience, acting as the documenter. The captioned information of this photograph explains the Jurmala (seashore) of Latvia is a tourist attraction due to its accessibility and rare crowds, but also mentions an ethnic tension between Russians and Latvians. I appreciate Parr’s work in capturing a decorative tourist photograph while underlying information about the location is not necessarily obvious. Yet, after understanding this information, one can infer that the rainbow stops half way through the image purposefully. The photograph is systematically drawn to express Latvia’s concept of tourism, the light and focus of the photograph on the two subjects and the rainbow, while also emphasizing the darker side of the image to represent an impression of cultural tension on the Latvia seashore. Through decisive composure, as seen here, documentary photography delivers information about a specific historical moment in time.