Photographer Martin Parr, whose colourful images captured British life, dies aged 73

Photographer Martin Parr, whose colourful images captured British life, has died at the age of 73.

He died on Saturday at his home in Bristol, the director of the Martin Parr Foundation, Jenni Smith, told BBC News.

In a statement, the foundation said he would “be greatly missed” and was survived by his wife Susie, daughter Ellen, sister and grandson. It added the family asked for privacy.

The documentary photographer rose to prominence in the mid 1980s, with The Last Resort, his study of working class people on holiday in New Brighton in Merseyside.

Parr’s works were known for capturing the smallest details of everyday life. His photographs were playful and had humour, but also provoked debate and discussion.

“I make serious photographs disguised as entertainment,” he told The Architectural Review in 2020.

“I try to point out when I find universal truths. Truth is subjective, but it’s the world how I found it.”

For more than 50 years, Parr’s photographs observed with an apparently flat but amused and sympathetic eye the quiet rituals and absurdities of his home country, from desolate seaside towns to village fetes and modern shopping centres.

He was known for using a colour saturated palette that mimicked postcards from the 1950s and 1960s.

The shots he took in New Brighton were meant to be about capturing a moment in time and challenging people’s perceptions of social classes.

The collection showcased the best – and worst – days at the seaside, with pictures of day trippers enjoying picnics among the litter and rundown amenities which characterised the Wirral town at the time.

But those famous seaside shots became very controversial, as he himself acknowledged earlier this year ahead of a new film about his life.

“People from London and the South East, they really didn’t know what places in the North looked like,” said Parr.

“The litter was quite terrible, but they just weren’t used to it, so it was almost like it was my fault that the place looked so scruffy.”

Last month, in an interview with AFP, he warned the world needs the kind of satire captured in his images more than ever.

“The state we’re all in is appalling,” he said. “We’re all too rich. We’re consuming all these things in the world. And we can’t. It’s unsustainable.”

Photographer Diane Smyth, editor of the British Journal of Photography, called Parr a “giant of post-war photography” in a tribute posted on Instagram.

“He was a hoot – always up for a call, especially if it was very early, and always very direct. He did he own thing, worked incredibly hard, helped others along the way – a life well-lived.”

Jonathan Stephenson, who collaborated on art and design projects with Parr over the years, told BBC News he died peacefully watching football, adding he was “a firm and loyal friend”.

“It was a massive privilege – and continually inspiring – to engage with Martin’s eyes and mind,” he said. “Martin’s enthusiasm for everyday life was infectious.”