Summary
- Magnum presents its Fact/Fiction Square Print Sale with more than 70 photographs.
- The sale runs from October 26 through November 1, 2026.
- Selected works are offered in a new 9×9-inch size for the first time.
- Prints are signed or carry an authorized estate stamp.
Magnum Photos opens its Fact/Fiction Square Print Sale today, offering more than 70 photographs by historical figures and newer voices as collectible prints for just one week.
The 28th edition explores the point where photographic evidence meets staging, illusion and the photographer’s imagination. The sale runs from October 26 to November 1, 2026.
Photographs between evidence and invention
The selection includes Martin Parr, Susan Meiselas, Eve Arnold, Chris Killip and other photographers with markedly different visual languages. Some pictures seem improbable precisely because they show real places, such as Parr’s crowded artificial beach in Japan; others deliberately challenge our confidence about what we are seeing.
The Square Print Sale has become a recurring opportunity to collect Magnum photographs. The earlier Magnum Odyssey sale in March 2026 focused on journeys and passages; Fact/Fiction turns the attention to how an image shapes our understanding of reality.
A new 9×9-inch size and what collectors should know
Alongside the familiar 6×6-inch prints (15.24×15.24 cm), participating photographers and estates were invited to offer a larger 9×9-inch format (22.86×22.86 cm) for the first time. Not every image is available in the larger size; if the option is absent in the shop, only the standard size is offered.
Magnum explains that prints carry a photographer’s signature or an authorized estate stamp on an archival label attached to the back. They are digital C-prints, retain the original photographic framing and are presented with white borders.
Availability is limited by time, not by a fixed edition quantity. After the sale closes, Magnum will not offer these prints again in the same size and format. European starting prices for the 6×6 prints are €120, while final options depend on the chosen print and framing.
The complete selection and purchasing options are available from the official Fact/Fiction page. The sale closes on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
The photographs in the selection
From visual tricks and reflections to everyday scenes that look staged, the selected works reveal how easily a photograph can upset our first impression of a scene.
What we think
What makes Fact/Fiction compelling is that it does not treat documentary photography as an automatically objective record. Parr’s artificial beach is a real place, yet looks like a set; the translucent figure in Meiselas’s self-portrait makes you stop and question how the frame was constructed.
For photographers, that is reason enough to explore the selection even without buying anything. Different generations and approaches converge on one question: how much of what we believe about a photograph comes from the event itself, and how much from the person behind the camera?
If considering a purchase, we would choose the picture and its story first, the size second and the price third. Knowing that the signature sits on a back label, and that the edition is limited by time rather than a numbered quantity, matters to collectors.
Frequently asked questions
Are the editions individually numbered?
No. Availability is limited by the sale window rather than a fixed print quantity.
Is every image offered at 9×9 inches?
No. The larger size is available only for selected photographs.
Are the prints signed?
They include a photographer’s signature or an authorized estate stamp on a label attached to the back.
