The National Trust will open the last major exhibition by the late British photographer Martin Parr (1952-2025) on 27 June at Lacock Abbey, England, bringing one of photography’s most influential careers full circle.
Known worldwide for his wry and often humorous observations of ordinary Britons and British life, Martin Parr returns to a place that shaped him early in his career. In the 1980s, he photographed the village of Lacock, further developing the distinctive documentary style that brought him international acclaim.
Back where it all began
Four decades on, his final major commission project brings that story full circle: in 2025 Parr once again turned his lens on Lacock, creating a deeply human portrait of the village, its people and its rhythms of daily life. Presented at Lacock Abbey — globally recognised as the home of photography through the pioneering work of Henry Fox Talbot — the exhibition offers a rare, intimate insight into Parr’s concluding year of work.
From VE Day events to the annual flower show and scarecrow trail, visitors will encounter moments of local celebration, community gatherings and the quieter details of everyday life that Parr captured with both affection and acuity. Seen together, they form a vivid portrait of contemporary Britain as experienced through a single Wiltshire village.
Alongside the exhibition, the National Trust will publish an accompanying book of the exhibition images with a foreword by Susie Parr, Martin’s widow, reflecting on the significance of Lacock in her husband’s life and creative journey. The exhibition will feature a short film made during the project, offering further context on Parr’s final months of work and his longstanding connection to the village.
Lacock Abbey: The birthplace of photography
Dr Andy Cochrane, Curator at Lacock said: “Martin knew that modern photography began at Lacock, and it was important to him that this remarkable place should feature in his archive. What we did not foresee is that this project would end up being his last major commission.
“That it was focused on the place where photography began, poetically closes the circle. Martin was smart, serious, witty, and hardworking. Collaborating with him was a joy, and his focus on Lacock last year was his gift to us all.”
Susie Parr added: “It is such a bittersweet experience for me to look through these photos of Lacock taken by Martin over the past year. There are so many echoes from his work throughout his long career. It’s a credit to Martin that he made this work, so full of the life he loved when his health was failing so dramatically. What a great way to end such a distinguished career, back in the home of photography.”
Magnum Photos and the Martin Parr Foundation developed the exhibition, supported by the National Trust’s photo printing partner CEWE.
Photobook
Alongside the exhibition, visitors will be able to see a film documenting the project and purchase an accompanying photobook featuring the images, with a foreword by Susie.
About Martin Parr
Martin Parr (1952–2025) was born in Epsom, United Kingdom, and studied photography at Manchester Polytechnic. In 1994, Parr became a full member of Magnum Photos and served as the agency’s president from 2013 to 2017. Alongside his photographic practice, he was active as a curator, editor, and professor. Having published over 150 books of his own and edited another 30 in his lifetime, Parr built a long-lasting legacy.
Parr’s work has been collected by many of the world’s leading museums, from the Tate in the UK to the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 2017, the Martin Parr Foundation was established in Bristol to support emerging, established and under-recognised photographers whose work focuses on Great Britain and Ireland.
The exhibition offers proof that even at the end of his distinguished career, Martin Parr was still fascinated by everyday British life. We are grateful that he continued to find fascination in the everyday and documented it for us, in his own particular wry style.
Lacock by Martin Parr opens at the Fox Talbot Museum at Lacock Abbey on 27 June 2026 and runs until 27 June 2027.
| More: | |
| Photography world stunned by death of Martin Parr at 73 | Discover the history of photography at the Fox Talbot Museum |
| Books by Martin Parr |
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The Sign of the Angel pub is another reason to visit Laycock.
David
I would certainly recommend a visit to the National Trust property at Laycock and to the village itself. I had a most rewarding day there a few years back with my camera. Indeed, I had an interesting exchange of photographs with William Fagan of our respective photographs of the famous Fox Talbot latticed window; a couple of his are residing on my PC. His black and white interior image of the window, taken in 2016, with his Leica M 240 is, to me, very atmospheric.
Chris
I think almost every photographer in the country has grabbed an internal shot of the latticed window! I have quite a few, taken on different visits.