Groups Collective By Roman Franc & Jon Tonks
Welcome to Groups Collective, a collaborative endeavour between two photographers Roman Franc (cz) and Jon Tonks (uk). They both create distinctive group pictures that remind people the importance of where they belong. These two photographers, and friends, have worked together for over 10 years, building their aesthetics both separately and in tandem.
Franc has been assembling and documenting groups in villages and cities across the Czech Republic and beyond, while Tonks has been cataloguing the traditional British pub and everyone in them. Both artists also create and exhibit their work worldwide, and have their imagery in public collections including – including Stanford University (US), Library of Congress (US), Martin Parr Foundation (UK), The Hyman Collection (UK) and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (US).
Franc and Tonks possess an unusual and effectively disarming humour that inspires people to participate in their ideas. People come together in their group pictures and abandon their comfort zone, all to make an image with their peers. The resulting photographs are more than a document. The creation of these photographs is a form of community building in and of itself. In a time where group identity is used to polarise and situate people against one another, these group portraits are a force in the opposite direction, bringing unity and camaraderie. The photographs offer a unique moment, and a celebration, where the act of coming together is preserved in a timelessly fascinating image.
I would urge anyone with the means, to get behind them and help bring it to fruition. Karen McQuaid Senior Curator, Photographers’ Gallery, London
Karen McQuaid
Senior Curator, Photographers’ Gallery, London
I can whole heartedly recommend considering support towards Jon Tonks and Roman Franc’s photographic adventures. They are producing community work together across America and beyond, and I would encourage you to help them create this work.
Martin Parr
Jon Tonks (*1981) is a British photographer best known for his compelling visual storytelling of remote, overlooked communities. Jon’s career took a defining turn during a trip to Ascension Island, which led to his acclaimed book Empire, an exploration of life on four British Overseas Territories in the South Atlantic, a project that cemented his reputation as a photographer capturing the impact of history and geography on human lives. The book, praised by Martin Parr as one of the best of the year, earned him the Vic Odden Award from the Royal Photographic Society in 2014.
Originally from the West Midlands, Jon studied design before transitioning to photography, first as a newspaper photographer and later pursuing a Master’s in Photojournalism at the London College of Communication. His work has been featured in leading publications like The New York Times, Le Monde, National Geographic (CN), The Guardian and The Sunday Times Magazine.
Jon has been shortlisted for the Taylor Wessing National Portrait Prize and the Terry O’Neill Award multiple times. His photography is held in prestigious collections, including those of Stanford University, California, the Martin Parr Foundation (UK) and the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, Texas.
Roman Franc (b. 1983, Brno, Czech Republic) is a Czech photographer best known for his long-term work with groups of people and group portraits. His work is based on collaboration with the people he photographs. Working primarily in large format, he combines documentary and staged photography.
He studied at Masaryk University in Brno before receiving an M.F.A. in Photography from the Institute of Creative Photography at Silesian University in Opava, where he is currently completing his Ph.D. and teaches as an external lecturer. He also works as a curator and is the author and co-author of several photography books. He has collaborated on projects for the Office of former Czech President Václav Havel.
His work has been exhibited in the Czech Republic and internationally, including in the United States and the United Kingdom. His photographs are held in public and private collections, including the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague and the Library of Congress. He is represented by Boswell Mourot Fine Art (USA).
Jon + Roman
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