Publication: August 2024 
Pages: 168
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 978-1-99-107201-6 

RRP: $75

Selected by the legendary photographer, the 79 extraordinary images in Glenn Busch’s A Man Holds a Fish cement and celebrate his reputation as one of New Zealand’s most influential photographers. Almost other-worldly and striking in their humanity and emotional effect, the images in this resonant book bear returning again and again.

Busch’s work secured public notice in 1984 with the publication of Working Men. As art writer Peter Ireland observes in his essay, ‘In the early 1970s . . . the social documentary tradition was the reigning, respectable approach, and Busch’s work remains foundational, even after half a century retaining a vividness and force in its resistance to any tendency to idealise in his portraiture, as this book so clearly attests.’

A handsome, large-format book beautifully designed by Seven, this book serves as an introduction to the work of a hugely influential and widely regarded figure in photography in Aotearoa, New Zealand and a celebration of his place in our art history.

About the author

Glenn Busch, best known for his intimate, thought-provoking portraits and captivating social documentary work, was born in Auckland in 1948. He left school at 14 and spent his early years working as a manual labourer in many places around Australia and New Zealand. His passion for photography began with the viewing of the work of Hungarian photographer Brassaï and his understanding of the medium was helped through a chance meeting with John B Turner. 

Throughout his career, Busch has focused on capturing the essence of daily life, often exploring themes of community, work and identity. His influential projects include Working Men, You Are My Darling Zita, The Man With No Arms and Other Stories, My Place and the ongoing Place In Time documentary project. 

Busch has also contributed to New Zealand’s photographic education by founding the influential Auckland photography gallery Snaps and teaching at the School of Fine Arts, University of Canterbury Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha for many years. 

Peter Ireland is a well-known painter, curator and art writer with a deep interest in photography inter alia.