Marcus Terence Luke Bleasdale (born 1968) is a British

photojournalist Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography (suc ...

. His books include ''One Hundred Years of Darkness'' (2003), ''The Rape of a Nation'' (2009) and ''The Unravelling'' (2015). Bleasdale was appointed Companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

(CMG) in the

2023 Birthday Honours The 2023 King's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of King Charles III to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part ...

for services to international photojournalism and human rights.

Life and career

Bleasdale has covered the conflict within the

Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

since 1998, which was published in his first book ''One Hundred Years of Darkness''. His second book, ''The Rape of a Nation'', addressed the issues of the conflict being fuelled by natural resource exploration and was awarded the Best Photography Book Award in 2009 by

Pictures of the Year International Pictures of the Year International (POYi) is a professional development program for visual journalism, visual journalists run on a non-profit basis by the Missouri School of Journalism's Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. POYi began as an a ...

in the USA. His work on human rights and conflict has been exhibited at the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

US House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

, The

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2009/note6220.doc.htm and the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

in the UK and the International Criminal Court in The Hauge. He works regularly with

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF; pronounced ), known in some English-speaking settings as Doctors Without Borders, is a charity that provides humanitarian medical care. It is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) of French origin known for its projects in conflict zo ...

Saint Kizito Orphanage and other NGOs to highlight health and human rights issues in several countries. He works to cover issues underreported by mainstream media. In 2007, Human Rights Watch and the Open Society Institute awarded Bleasdale a grant to continue his work on justice and accountability in the DRC. He is an

Enough Project The Enough Project is a Washington, D.C.–based non-profit organization that was founded in 2007. Its stated mission is to end genocide and crimes against humanity. The Enough Project conducts research in several conflict areas in Africa includ ...

Fellow. Bleasdale was a member of the

VII Photo Agency VII Photo Agency is an international photo agency wholly owned and governed by its membership. History The photographer owned agency was originally conceived by Gary Knight (photographer), Gary Knight and John Stanmeyer. They were subsequently j ...

until 2015 and a member of its Board. He has been one of the journalists covering the conflict in

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

between 2013 and 2017, documenting the violence for Human Rights Watch alongside their Director of Emergencies, Peter Bouckaert. This has been covered by many publications and news channels, including ''National Geographic''. He has had his work published in the UK, Europe and the US in ''

Sunday Times Magazine ''The Sunday Times Magazine'' is a magazine included with ''The Sunday Times''. In 1962 it became the first colour supplement to be published as a supplement to a UK newspaper, and its arrival "broke the mould of weekend newspaper publishing". ...

'', ''The Telegraph'' Magazine, ''

GEO Geo- is a prefix derived from the Greek word ''γη'' or ''γαια'', meaning "earth", usually in the sense of "ground or land”. GEO or Geo may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''GEO'' (magazine), a popular scientific magazi ...

'', ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'', ''Time'', ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

,'' ''National Geographic'', ''Stern'', ''

Le Monde (; ) is a mass media in France, French daily afternoon list of newspapers in France, newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average print circulation, circulation of 480,000 copies per issue in 2022, including ...

'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', ''Mother Jones'' (Masthead Photographer), ''

Aftenposten (; ; stylized as in the masthead) is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation as well as Norway's newspaper of record. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 daily copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen ...

'' and ''

Die Zeit (, ) is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History The first edition of was ...

''. Bleasdale graduated with an MSt in International Relations from Cambridge University and is still documenting human rights issues around the world and working as managing director of Wilstar, a Social Impact Not for Profit based in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Personal life

He lives in Oslo with his wife, Karin Beate, and daughters.

Publications

*''One Hundred Years of Darkness.'' London: Pirogue, 2003. . *''The Rape of a Nation.'' London: Mets and Schilt, 2009. . *''The Unravelling.'' New York: FotoEvidence, 2015. .

Films

* ''The Secret Life of Walter Mitty'' (2013) starring

Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Known for his blend of slapstick humor and sharp wit, Stiller rose to fame through comedies such as ''There's Something About Mary'' (1998), ' ...

. Included photographs by Bleasdale and members of

. * ''A Thousand Times Goodnight'' (2013) starring Juliet Binoche. Bleasdale was an advisor and had photographs included.

Awards

* 2004:

Photographer of the Year * 2005: Readers Award (with two others), Days Japan International Photojournalism Awards. * 2005: The Olivier Rebbot Award for Best Foreign Reporting * 2005: The

Open Society Institute Open Society Foundations (OSF), formerly the Open Society Institute, is an American grantmaking network founded by business magnate George Soros. Open Society Foundations financially supports civil society groups around the world, with the s ...

(OSI) Distribution Grant * 2005:

(POYi) Magazine Photographer of the Year Award * 2005: The Alexia Foundation for World Peace * 2005: The

World Press Photo of the Year The World Press Photo of the Year award is part of the World Press Photo Awards, organized by the Dutch foundation World Press Photo. Considered one of the most prestigious and coveted awards in photojournalism, the World Press Photo of the Ye ...

* 2007:

and the

awarded him a grant to continue his work on justice and accountability in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * 2007: The Freedom of Expression Foundation Norway * 2009: Public Prize (Reader's Award) (along with four others), Days Japan International Photojournalism Awards. * 2009: Magazine News Award in POYi * 2010: Anthropographia Award for Photography and Human Rights * 2010: The Hansel Mieth Award * 2010: Best Photography Book Award from POYi * 2011: The Freedom of Expression Norway * 2011:

Webby Award The Webby Awards (colloquially referred to as the Webbys) are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over three thousand industry experts a ...

for the feature ''Dear Obama'' * 2012:

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is the world's oldest photographic society having been in continuous existence since 1853. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as th ...

Hood Medal for meritorious performance in photography, with particular emphasis on photography for public service. * 2012: Nominated for a News and Documentary

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

with other members of

for the film ''Starved For Attention'', made for Médecins Sans Frontières. * 2013: Overseas Press Club of America Awards, Feature Photography Award for ''Last of the Vikings'' * 2014:

World Press Photo World Press Photo Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Founded in 1955, the organization holds the annual World Press Photo Contest for press photography. Since 2011, World Press Photo has orga ...

, 3rd Prize Contemporary Issues for ''Last of the Vikings'' * 2014:

Robert Capa Gold Medal The Robert Capa Gold Medal is an award for "best published photographic reporting from abroad requiring exceptional courage and enterprise". It is awarded annually by the Overseas Press Club of America (OPC). It was created in honor of the war phot ...

from the

Overseas Press Club The Overseas Press Club of America (OPC) was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member, as was the war correspondent Peggy Hull. The club seeks to maintain ...

. * 2015: FotoEvidence Book Award for Inferno:Central African Republic. * 2015: W. Eugene Smith Fellowship from the W. Eugene Smith Memorial Fund. *2023: Companion of the

(CMG) in the

for services to international photojournalism and human rights.

Exhibitions

Chicago Public Library The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the Chicago, City of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. It consists of 81 locations, including a central library, three regional libraries, and branches distributed thr ...

(2006) *

(2009) *

Headquarters of the United Nations , image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004 (cropped).jpg , image_size = 275px , caption = View of the complex from Long Island City in 2021; from left to right: the Secretariat, Conference, and General Assembly buil ...

, New York (2009) * Columbia College (2009) * The Houses of Parliament, UK (2010) *

Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting is an American news media organization established in 2006 that sponsors independent reporting on global issues that other media outlets are less willing or able to undertake on their own. The center's go ...

(2012) *

The White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800 whe ...

(2012) *

Fotografiska Fotografiska (Swedish for “photographic”) is one of the most successful photography museums worldwide, dedicated to inspiring a more conscious world through the power of photography, art, and culture. Founded in Stockholm in 2010, Fotograf ...

Farming Out of Poverty (2013) *

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Geneva, Shan ...

London (2015) IMPACT for

. *The International Criminal Court, The Hauge (2018) *The United Nations Headquarters, New York (2018) *

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...

(2019)

References

External links

*
'Rape of a Nation' by Bleasdale
on MediaStorm
'Proof: Marcus Bleasdale on Shock and Change'
National Geographic

The Telegraph Magazine
'Capturing conflict mineral trade in DRC'
TEDx Talks
'A visual journey into Africa'
Bleasdale addresses The Skoll World Forum for Social Entrepreneurship
New York Times Lens Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bleasdale, Marcus British war photographers British photojournalists 1968 births Living people Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George British people of Irish descent