Lifework: Norman Parkinson’s Century of Style

Norman Parkinson was one of the greatest and most enduring fashion and portrait photographers of the 20th Century. He was an innovator who changed the face of both genres: eschewing the stiffness of the time, his images capture life, spontaneity and character. He photographed everyone from movie stars to models, rock’n’rollers to royals, in an impressive career spanning six decades.

The legendary photographer is subject of a new retrospective at the National Theatre, ‘Lifework: Norman Parkinson’s Century of Style’, which coincides with the centenary of his birth this month. The exhibition traces the photographer’s lengthy career from his first forays into fashion before World War Two to shots taken shortly before his death in 1990.

This collection of Parkinson’s most striking images makes it clear why many consider him the father of modern fashion photography. So many of his creations could leap from the pages of a magazine today…