Visual Culture : Tourism, Landscape and myth

Heritage in Britain

Paul Reas

"British photographer Paul Reas is part of a select tradition of British photographers who brought to light the understated faces of British culture in the 1980s and 90s. Humorous and slightly caustic, Reas' images are a criticism of an emerging cultural façade epitomized by heritage industry sites, branding, and figurative cultural icons."

http://www.jameshymangallery.com/artists/17200/8965/paul-reas/flogging-a-dead-horse-eden-camp

"Flogging a Dead Horse (1993) presents a nationwide survey of the emergence of the ‘heritage industry’: museums and theme parks such as Beamish Open Air Museum that offered a nostalgic and often commercialised version of the past in the wake of the collapse of heavy manufacturing and industry. "

http://www.impressions-gallery.com/exhibitions/exhibition.php?id=62

Although a lot of paul reas' work focuses on britain during a time of 'rebirth' when thatcher was in power, some of his work focus' on this concept of tourism as a myth, as he looks at the new heritage sites which were sprouting up due to the closure of industrial sights. This emphasis on consumerism and the idea of heritage sights bringing money through people looking at the past is exactly what photographers such as martin parr try to get across in his photography surrounding tourism around the world. Everything is so materialised and focused upon the booming consumer industry.

" Flogging a Dead Horse (1993) presents a nationwide survey of the emergence of the ‘heritage industry’: museums and theme parks such as Beamish Open Air Museum that offered a nostalgic and often commercialised version of the past in the wake of the collapse of heavy manufacturing and industry. "

http://shutterhub.org.uk/blog/paul-reas-day-dreaming-about-the-good-times