Renowned British photographer and photojournalist Martin Parr passed away at the age of 73 on December 6, 2025 at his home in Bristol. News of the passing was announced by the Martin Parr Foundation on its website with these words, “It is with great sadness that we announce that Martin Parr (1952-2025) died on December 6, 2025 at his home in Bristol. He leaves behind his wife Susie, daughter Ellen, sister Vivien and grandson George. The family requests that privacy be respected at this time. The Martin Parr Foundation and Magnum Photos will work together to preserve and share Martin’s legacy. More information will be provided in due course. Martin will be greatly missed.”
An acute chronicler of our times, Martin Parr was an artist who, in the face of the uninterrupted stream of images released by the media, allowed the public to perceive the world through his unique perspective.
Born in Epsom, Surrey, U.K., in 1952, his early interest in photography was nurtured by his grandfather, George Parr, himself a keen amateur photographer. His academic training took place at Manchester Polytechnic, where he studied photography from 1970 to 1973.
At first glance, Parr’s works may appear exaggerated or even grotesque, characterized by chosen motifs that may seem bizarre, garish colors and unusual perspectives. Parr defines “propaganda” as the overwhelming power of images disseminated by the media, and he responds to this by using his favorite weapons: critique, seduction, and, inimitably, humor. The result is photography that is original and funny, accessible and easy to understand, but at the same time shows in a profound way how we live, how we present ourselves to others, and what our core values are.
The concepts of leisure, consumption and communication form the core of his photographic research, which Martin Parr has pursued for decades while traveling the world. Through these explorations, he has examined both national peculiarities and international phenomena. His ability to make us see in completely new ways things that had always seemed familiar allowed him to create his own image of society, combining analysis of the visible signs of globalization with out-of-the-ordinary visual experiences. In his photographs, Parr juxtaposed specific images with universal ones without attempting to resolve contradictions; individual characteristics are accepted and eccentricities are enhanced.
Since the early 1970s, Parr has worked on numerous photographic projects. His early projects include Home Sweet Home (1974) and Bad Weather (1982). Many of his series explore life in Britain, such as The Non-Conformists, first exhibited in 1981 and shown again in exhibitions such as Only in England along with work by Tony Ray-Jones. Particularly significant was the 1986 exhibition, The Last Resort, held at the Serpentine Gallery in London, followed by The Cost of Living (1989) and Signs of the Times (1992).
A distinctive aspect of Parr’s artistic strategy has been the creation of extensive photographic series. Part of his approach is to present and publish the same photographs in different contexts: both in art photography, in exhibitions and art books, and in the related fields of advertising and journalism. His influence on photographic culture has been consolidated over time. In 1994, he became a full member of the prestigious Magnum Photos, rising to serve as its president between 2013 and 2017.
Parr also developed an interest in filmmaking and began using his photography in genres as diverse as fashion and advertising. His filmography includes documentaries such as It’s Nice Up North (2006) and commissioned work on English labor and traditions, such as Tudor Crystal (2013) and Turkey and Tinsel (2014).
His global impact is evident from the broad scope of his exhibitions. The major retrospective Martin Parr Photoworks 1971 - 2000, which began in 2002 at the Barbican Art Gallery and the National Media Museum, traveled Europe for the next five years, touching on cities such as Rotterdam, Madrid, Copenhagen, and Paris. Other major series such as Common Sense (1999) saw exhibitions from the United Kingdom and the United States to countries such as Slovakia, Russia, Zambia and Italy (Florence and Rome).
In the 2000s, Parr continued to explore universal and specific themes. The Small World series had tours in Finland, Germany, Belgium and Chile. The Luxury project, which opened in 2008 as part of the Parrworld exhibition at Haus de Kunst in Munich, has been exhibited around the world, from Stockholm to New York, focusing on luxury consumption. The theme of food has been covered in specific exhibitions such as Food (2003, 2006, 2013, 2016) and has been part of group exhibitions such as Feast for the Eyes: The Story of Food in Photography. In 2019, the National Portrait Gallery in London hosted Only Human, an exhibition that included portraits from around the world with a specific focus on British identity.
Parr has also played a key role as a curator and historian of photography. He was Guest Artistic Director for the Rencontres D’Arles in 2004 and guest curator at the New York Photo Festival in 2008. He curated the Brighton Photo Biennial in 2010. Among the most significant exhibitions he has curated is Strange and Familiar, which opened in London in 2016 and examined how international photographers have portrayed the United Kingdom since the 1930s. His commitment to the history of photography is clear in the publication, in collaboration with Gerry Badger, of The Photobook: A History in three volumes, as well as The Chinese Photobook, released in 2015 in collaboration with WassinkLundgren. Altogether, Martin Parr has published more than 120 books of his own work and edited 30 others.
His work is widely recognized; he has received numerous awards, including the Erich Salomon Prize (2006), the Baume et Mercier award (2008) in recognition of his career and contributions to contemporary photography, and the Sony World Photography Award for Outstanding Contribution to Photography (2017). Between 2004 and 2012, Parr was Professor of Photography at the University of Wales Newport and, since 2013, at the University of Ulster.
In recognition of his enduring impact and commitment to the preservation and promotion of photography, the Martin Parr Foundation opened in Bristol in the fall of 2017. Through his integrative approach, distinctive style, and choice of subject matter, Parr has long been a role model for the younger generation of photographers. In 2024 he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival and was recognized as a member of the International Photography Hall of Fame.
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| Farewell to Martin Parr, the British photojournalist who chronicled the society of consumerism and globalization |
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