This week's In Memoriam column honors five figures from the visual art world: Valentine Willie (1954–2026), a champion of Southeast Asian art who founded Valentine Willie Fine Art and helped organize the landmark traveling survey 'Faith + The City'; Marjane Satrapi (1969–2026), the Iranian-French artist and graphic novelist best known for her graphic novel 'Persepolis' (2000), which was adapted into an Oscar-nominated animated film; Khoo Sui Hoe (1939–2026), a celebrated Malaysian painter whose surrealistic works are held in major museum collections; John Claridge (1944–2026), a British photographer renowned for his intimate black-and-white portraits of London's East End; and Saâd Hassani (1948–2026), a Moroccan painter influenced by Art Brut and the Casablanca School.
These obituaries matter because they collectively underscore the global diversity of artistic practice and the importance of regional champions who elevate underrepresented art scenes. Willie's work helped build the infrastructure for Southeast Asian modern art on the international stage, while Satrapi's graphic novel brought Iranian diaspora experiences to a worldwide audience. The passing of these figures marks the loss of distinct voices that shaped their respective fields, from Malaysian modernism to British documentary photography to postcolonial Moroccan art, reminding readers of the breadth of contributions that define the visual art world.