Mercy Mercer.

Mercy Mercer. Photographs by Derek Henderson. Michael Lett Publishing, 2009. 140 pp., 128 colour illustrations on Magno Satin matt artpaper and AA woodfree, 12¼x14½".

'Mercy Mercer' is photographer Derek Henderson's second monograph (his previous monograph was The Terrible Boredom of Paradise, published in 2005). You can see more of his series of work by clicking here.


Henderson's work and areas of interest has been described as anti-heroic and everyday, and area-wise they stretch from "abandoned rural New Zealand landscapes and the residents of the alternative communities that line the Waikato River, to Maori teenagers and workers at the Waitoa Slaughterhouse, to fashion models and intimate moments from his private life. [His] vast and varied subject matter is united by an approach marked by a kind of democratic naturalism, where all phenomena, no matter how insignificant or commonplace, is given equal attention.

Although variously described as antiheroic and anti-iconic, Henderson’s interest in the ‘ordinary’ can be deceptive and his narratives often reveal themselves to be more complex and unsteady than they first appear.


Mercy Mercer’s 128 colour photographs of the Waikato river, its neighbours, travelers, typically ‘New Zealand’ in flavour, are punctuated by unexpected moments that tell unofficial stories of New Zealand; tales of colonial invasion, poverty, immigration, boredom, and the ecological degradation of the landscape at the hands of commerce."

-- from publisher's description.

To see more images from this series of photographs go here, and to see more of Derek Henderson's work go here.

A special edition (including original print) of 'Mercy Mercer' is available through the publisher.