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Mark Power

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description Mark Power Overview

Mark Power is a British documentary photographer who became a nominee of Magnum Photos in 2002 and a full member in 2007. His project 'The Shipping Forecast' (1992–1996) systematically photographed locations across all 31 sea areas named in the BBC Radio 4 shipping forecast, examining British coastal and maritime landscapes. Power's subsequent work has continued to explore themes of place, memory, and social change, often through long-term, color-based documentary projects. He has taught photography at the University of Brighton for many years.

help Mark Power FAQ

How did Mark Power photograph the BBC Shipping Forecast?

Between 1992 and 1996, Power traveled to locations corresponding to all 31 sea areas named in BBC Radio 4's Shipping Forecast. The resulting photographs pair familiar names such as Dogger, Fisher and German Bight with real coastal landscapes.

Is The Shipping Forecast a documentary of weather at sea?

Not in a literal meteorological sense. Power used the forecast's poetic geography as a route around the British coastline, photographing ports, beaches, industry and communities rather than illustrating individual broadcasts.

What did Mark Power photograph in The Treasury Project?

The Treasury Project documented the restoration of the Treasury building in Whitehall during the 1990s. Power photographed construction work and the building's hidden interiors over an extended commission.

When did Mark Power join Magnum Photos?

Power became a Magnum nominee in 2002 and later a full member of the cooperative. Magnum was founded in 1947 by photographers including Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson.