The Rhubarb Triangle by Martin Parr
The Hepworth Gallery, February 2016
During a brief visit back home to Leeds over the Chinese New Year period, I had the opportunity to visit Martin Parr’s latest exhibition at the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield. The project, The Rhubarb Triangle, explores the unique agricultural area in West Yorkshire known for its rhubarb production.
After living away from West Yorkshire for nearly 18 years—8 years in the Isle of Man and the last 7 in Hong Kong—the exhibition felt particularly emotional. Rhubarb, an iconic British vegetable that behaves like a fruit, holds a special place in my childhood. Although my house wasn’t directly in the Rhubarb Triangle, I grew up hearing stories about how the area where my home now stands used to be vast fields of rhubarb. My grandparents always had a small rhubarb patch behind the shed, perhaps in homage to these stories, even though the plant was rarely eaten.
The exhibition was thoughtfully laid out in a clockwise direction, with separate sections dedicated to different stages of rhubarb production: Farming (Growing), Harvest, Public Consumption, and Products. The prints, all in the same aspect ratio, were a mix of A2 and A0 sizes. This visual consistency—something highlighted in my early assignments—was something I immediately noticed and appreciated.
What I found most intriguing, and perhaps reassuring, was that Parr’s images are remarkably ordinary. His work is a blend of environmental shots, portraits, and detailed images—a perfect example of what you’d expect from a photo essay. Parr doesn’t shy away from showing the “warts and all” of the gritty, hard work involved in producing commercial rhubarb. There’s a real intimacy in his approach, and it’s clear he has captured the essence of the work, either through his personal affection for rhubarb or his interaction with the people involved.
Attending this exhibition came at a pivotal point in my course, as it helped deepen my understanding of “the distance between us and the camera” and the importance of context in photography. While Parr is a stranger to the Rhubarb Triangle, there’s a closeness to his subject matter. He has succeeded in documenting the arduous labor of rhubarb production, creating a sense of connection despite being an outsider.
Interestingly, these images felt very familiar to me—almost commonplace—because they remind me of home in West Yorkshire. However, I can imagine that if someone in Hong Kong, for example, were to view them, they would find the images full of mystery and new detail—similar to how I perceive the street markets of Asia.
Bibliography
Bayley, S., Chisholm, K., Killen, M., Delingpole, J., and Wordsworth, D. (2016) ‘I enjoy the banal’: Stephen Bayley meets Martin Parr. Available at: The Spectator (Accessed: 6 March 2016).
Cumming, E. (2016) Mysteries of the Rhubarb Triangle, Revealed by Martin Parr. Available at: The Guardian (Accessed: 6 March 2016).
Parr, M. and Magnum (no date) The Rhubarb Triangle and Other Stories: Photographs by Martin Parr. Available at: The Hepworth Wakefield (Accessed: 6 March 2016).
