This photo seems like a visual contradiction to me, maybe a slight insult. Despite Parr delibrately placing the cross in the centre of the image and having the viewer focus on it straight away, the idea of christianity is completely irrelevant. The cross is made of gold and is probably worn more as jewellery than a religious symbol. The glistening sweat on the man's chest suggest he has time to spare in the sun, money to spend on tacky golden necklaces and prefers to spend it that way rather than give money to the poor or go to church. The shapes on the cross suggest it's facing the other way and hiding Jesus, maybe he's too embarassed to show his face. I think a lot of Parr's work is based around humiliating his subjects and perhaps he's created his own comfort zone in this. Perhaps the idea of humiliation stems from his work in fashion photography, and the ridiculous outfits he has to document? I prefer projects such as "Autoportrait", which carries a theme of identity, alongside conveying a huge range of culture with a consistent subject matter. It feels more like a science experiment than a photo project, and comes out with some great results. I also like "Boring Postcards" and "Saddam Hussein Watches" because they ask questions to do with money, necessity, and waste; these projects actually say something about strange objects and their purpose rather than focussing on people who Parr perceives to live their lives/spend money differently.
