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39 Comments

  1. OMG, hope it’s not true. Maybe the greatest of all time. A true inspiration.

  2. Irving Penn RIP

    My first college project was to simulate a master advertising photographers work. I chose Irving Penn’s color soap image. He will be missed.

  3. I can’t believe it! My greatest inspiration. And the greatest artist to come from New Jersey.

  4. He was my favorite photographer. When I traveled to Gordon Parks funeral I kept looking around hoping to see him…
    Very sad day

  5. Has anyone seen any videos of Irving Penn?

  6. RIP Irving Penn the best photographer i ever seen, the one i admire the most and look for inspiration,.
    it’s a sad day for art.

  7. Yes very sad day, amazing photographer…

  8. is this confirmed?

  9. A very sad day. He was GENIAL!! My fav photographer ever. He was ahead of his time.

    Manuello Paganelli
    Los Angeles

  10. Sad news-He has been a great inspiration-his book Passage is still a favorite in my collection.

    Kenneth Rimm

    Copenhagen Denmark

  11. I met Mr. Penn on my birthday several years ago when I first visited NYC. Years later I returned to have him sign a rare book for my wife. He was sitting there reading a book on the life of Pablo Picasso. He will always be a source of inspiration in my work. Mr. Penn may you rest in peace.

  12. Very very sad news and a great loss to the photography world. He was one of the main reasons I love black and white photography.
    Rest in peace Irving.

  13. OMG this is so very sad! Although he lived a long and amazing life he will still be missed tremendously :(

  15. He was my favorite all-time photographer. Brilliant talent!
    Arlene

  16. Irving Penn was an amazing and inspirational photographer whose work never ceased to inspire. A true artist right up to the end. If you’re anywhere near LA between now and January, don’t miss his “Small Trades” exhibit at The Getty of 252 of his prints from the series. It’s fantastic to see the body of work as Penn wished to have it presented.

  17. Irving Penn’s photographs, style and legacy will never get old.
    Dibs on the cold head enlarger.

  19. I remember hearing a story…though it could be urban legend…about a new assistant of his, eager to please, cleaned all his studio windows from years of a built up patina of grime that provided him with a beautiful diffusion of light. He wasn’t pleased.

    He did light beautifully, but his images were always about the subject. A tremendous inspiration.

    RIP

    • @Ken,
      yes that would be Dennis Manarchy.

      • @tim,
        sorry it was Douglas Kirkland, brain cramp there.

  20. Seeing this qote regarding the camera; “I recognize it for the instrument it is, part Stradivarius, part scalpel.” Irving Penn, made me think maybe he *never* shot digitally. Anyone know?

  21. I guess I was hoping he was an immortal demi-god. Rest in peace Irving Penn. Thank you for all you have given us.

  22. The classic. Unequalled and a huge inspiration. I remember devouring articles I read about him when I was a teenager.

    The best!

  23. From the Smiths,
    There is a light and it never goes out……..

  24. Richard Burton

  25. May his soul rest in peace.
    He inspired an entire generation and was certianly my hero and guide.
    Frank

  26. A tremendously sad loss, although 92 is definitely something I hope I can match (I type, as I swig on a glass of booze).

    It does make me think, though, how young fashion photography really is as a genre.

  27. Irving Penn was the living counterpoint to all the noise and clutter in modern photography in recent years.

    What an incredible career, what an incredible life, he was the embodiment of classic.

  29. Thank you Irving.

  30. RIP. I was in his studio one time, what I remembered was a Deardorf 8×10, barrel lens, no shutter (black card to hold in front of the lens), old Speedo pack and a softbox. That was it. From the viewpoint of a still-life photographer, he was the man.

  31. Irving Penn was a tallented artist in many ways, to set an iconic standard for fashion as did Ansel Adams for Landscapes and black and white photography. It is a los that will be felt for years to come. May God bless his family may they have peace in this time.

  32. If there was a better photographer I never saw him. A great loss for the human race. RIP Irving. Thank you.

  33. I hear he kept shooting till the very end…

    Is there a way to see his more recent work?
    It’s awfully difficult to find!

  34. I worked for Mr. Penn for several years as a photograph and negative retoucher in the 80’s. He was the kindest man, soft spoken, intelligent, always the epitome of a gentleman, a genius with light. He always put his subjects at ease. These were the days of Vanity Fair covers. His wife Lisa used to bake chocolate chip cookies for us. Working there was a gift – I never saw it as work but as a priviliege. RIP Mr. Penn. Your genius will never be duplicated.

  35. When I first discovered Irving Penn back in my New England School of Photography days, I felt I had discovered a great treasure . Irving Penn’s work has meant so much to so many people. His work is beautiful and was my true inspiration on becoming a photographer, thanks Irving.

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