Jean-François Leroy, a leading figure in French photojournalism and founder of the Visa pour l'Image festival in Perpignan, died on Monday at the age of 69. He passed away from cancer at his home in Paris, surrounded by his family. His death has deeply affected the world of press photography, just as the 38th edition of the festival he created in 1989 had begun in Perpignan. For the first time since the creation of Visa pour l'Image, Jean-François Leroy was unable to attend the event's opening ceremony, held on Saturday, August 29. Although weakened by his illness, he had continued to work on this year's festival. Delphine Lelu, director of Visa pour l'Image, explained that he had been involved "from A to Z in the preparation" of this 38th edition.
Nearly 40 years defending photojournalism
Born on October 3, 1956, Jean-François Leroy discovered photography at a very young age. An aunt who worked at the Catholic newspaper La Vie catholique allowed him to use the magazine's photo lab. After briefly studying medicine, he turned definitively to photography and journalism. He worked for several specialized publications, including Photo-Reporter , Le Photographe , and Photo-Revue , before becoming editor-in-chief of Photo Magazine between 1984 and 1987. He also worked for the Sipa Press agency and in 1988 as the agent for photographer Dominique Issermann. Jean-François Leroy quickly realized that his place lay less behind the camera than in advocating for and promoting the work of photojournalists. This vocation took on an international dimension starting in 1989.
Visa pour l'Image, his life's work
That year, Jean-François Leroy helped create Visa pour l'Image in Perpignan, notably with the support of Roger Thérond, then head of Paris Match . The first edition laid the foundations for a formula that would remain largely unchanged: exhibitions free to the public, screenings, professional meetings, awards, and a central focus on photographers covering wars, political crises, disasters, social upheavals, and major international events. Over the years, Visa pour l'Image has become one of the world's leading photojournalism events. Photographers from all over the globe gather there every year at the end of summer. The festival also provides an opportunity to showcase to the general public photojournalism stories that are sometimes difficult to publish in full in the press. Jean-François Leroy championed a demanding approach to news photography: showing the facts, prioritizing on-the-ground reporting, and giving a platform to reporters who sometimes take considerable risks to document current events. This conception of the profession had also placed the festival at the heart of controversies, notably when Jean-François Leroy defended the independence of the jury in the face of the refusal of the mayor of Perpignan Louis Aliot to award a prize in 2024 to the Gazan photographer Loay Ayyoub.
A highly critical voice regarding the crisis in press photography
For nearly four decades, Jean-François Leroy never hid his concern about the economic decline of photojournalism. The disappearance of major agencies, reduced editorial budgets, a decrease in commissions, and increasing difficulties in financing assignments: he regularly denounced the increasingly precarious working conditions of photographers. Visa pour l'Image also became a concrete way to support the profession. Several prizes and grants were awarded each year to allow photographers to pursue their projects or finance new assignments. This commitment to defending documentary photography echoes the work of leading figures in the field, such as the photojournalist Jacques Boissay , who passed away last January. Jean-François Leroy also mentored several generations of photographers, from the great names of the 20th century to young reporters presenting their work for the first time in Perpignan.
He had been preparing for the 2026 edition until the very end.
Despite his cancer, Jean-François Leroy remained fully involved in organizing Visa pour l'Image. Hospitalized in recent months, he had still given an interview in June and prepared the program for the 2026 edition. His family and the festival team announced his passing Monday morning. "The entire Visa pour l'Image – Perpignan team and the entire family of Jean-François Leroy are saddened to announce the death, this Monday morning, August 31, of the founder and long-time director of the international photojournalism festival ," reads the message published after his death. For Delphine Lelu, Jean-François Leroy was "the soul of this festival ," which he had championed since its inception. "He leaves us a great legacy. He always wanted Perpignan to be a beacon for photojournalists, and we will ensure that the festival continues to shine ," she declared.
Visa pour l'Image loses its historical founder
The 38th edition of Visa pour l'Image thus continues without the man who had been its face since 1989. This absence is particularly symbolic for an event to which Jean-François Leroy had dedicated the majority of his professional life. For nearly forty years, he made Perpignan a meeting place for photographers, newsrooms, agencies, and the public, all the while defending a conviction that remained unwavering until his final months: that press photography is still essential for showing and documenting the world. Jean-François Leroy was 69 years old.
Community
Comments
Write a comment
Be the first to comment on this article.