Deezen founder dies aged 54

Image sourced from Twitter: Deezen founder Marcus Fairs has passed away

Fairs was taken to hospital last week after falling ill. Following a short period of intensive care, he passed away on 30 June. He is survived by his wife Rupinder Bhogal, who is the director at Deezen, his children, his parents and his sister.

Getting his start at Icon magazine, Fairs launched Deezen from his home in 2006, which became a popular and influential online architecture, interiors and design magazine. He was the first digital journalist to earn the prestigious Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2017.

Marcus Fairs was a world, a star, an energy source for so many of us. He made careers and changed lives. An incredibly talented, passionate journalist, editor and friend. He had my back, supported and was part of almost everything I did. What will we do now? I’m heartbroken.

— Beatrice Galilee (@_Beatrice) July 4, 2022

Last year, Deezen was acquired by the JP/Politiken Media Group. At the time of the acquisition, Fairs said, "Dezeen exists to give our global community a platform where the best work and the most important topics are shared, celebrated and debated. We want Dezeen to be able to continue to do this long into the future. We want Dezeen to forever be a bastion of independent journalism, a champion of architecture and design and a force for good in the world."

Fairs’ family and the Deezen staff has asked for privacy during this difficult time.

Tributes have been pouring in on social media since the news of his passing:

RIP Marcus Fairs.

Lovely person, great friend, supporter and critic.
Our hearts go out to his family. Sad days. pic.twitter.com/Bwjm7KMtNL
— Waugh Thistleton Architects (@WaughThistleton) July 4, 2022

We are very saddened to hear of the passing of Marcus Fairs – what he accomplished with Dezeen was a phenomenal contribution to architecture and design publishing and we are all the poorer for losing him. Our thoughts are with his colleagues, friends and family. https://t.co/AhDRM6c5Fh

— Architects’ Journal (@ArchitectsJrnal) July 4, 2022

We are deeply saddened by the sudden and unexpected death of @dezeen Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief Marcus Fairs. Our thoughts are with Marcus' family and the dezeen team. pic.twitter.com/yEPrBtM8gB

— London Festival of Architecture (@LFArchitecture) July 4, 2022