Words and pictures
A lecture by John Simmons and Martin Parr
Thursday 7 June 2007, The Watershed
In a world saturated with both images and messages, is a picture worth a 1000 words? Or do a few chosen words still count? After a wonderful evening at the Watershed in Bristol, many people would agree that you need and can enjoy both. The talk, on the 7 June, was a sell-out.
The first half of the evening was by John Simmons who spoke about his passion for words and language. John is one of the UK's leading copywriters, a brand 'tone of voice' guru and author of numerous books on the role of copy in the commercial world. We were treated to an amusing and fascinating insight into the importance of words and language and given tips for better writing.
This was followed by Martin Parr's 'photo-biography'. Martin is a highly acclaimed Magnum photographer with a reputation for powerful images and an innovative approach to social documentary. Martin revealed some of the secrets and reasons behind his articulate images in an entertaining history of his photographic career.
'We received many comments saying how much everyone had enjoyed the evening and that the quality of the speakers was excellent,' said Bob Mytton, Chairman of the Design Forum.
Further information
John Simmons:
Until 2003 John Simmons was a Director of leading brand consultancy Interbrand. He is now an independent writer and consultant working on brands as diverse as Diageo, Unilever and 3. He is director of training and brand language at The Writer. John is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and has three times been a judge in the 'writing for design' category at the D&AD awards. He has written a number of books on the subject of the relationship between language and identity. We, me, them & it: the power of words in business was published by Texere in November 2000 and became a business books bestseller on Amazon. John is also a founder director of 26, the not-for-profit group that champions the cause of more creative language in business. He was the driving force behind “26 letters”, the exhibition at the British Library that was a highlight of the 2004 London Design Festival.
Martin Parr:
Martin studied photography at Manchester Polytechnic from 1970 to 1973. Since that time, he has worked on numerous photographic projects. He has developed an international reputation for his innovative imagery, his oblique approach to social documentary and his input to photographic culture within the UK and abroad. In 1994 he became a full member of Magnum Photographic corporation. In 2002 a large retrospective of Martin’s work was initiated by the Barbican Art Gallery and the National Museum. Photos in Bradford will be touring Europe in the next 3-4 years. He was appointed Professor of photography in 2004 at the University of Wales Newport campus.
