Celebrity deaths of 2016 captured in one heartbreaking photo

An artist's poignant tribute to all the culture stars lost to the world in 2016 has struck a chord with social media users.

Chris Barker's (@christhebarker) image, which he created on Photoshop, has been widely shared on social media, with the montage now updated to include Hollywood star Debbie Reynolds and her daughter Carrie Fisher.

#RIPDebbieReynolds Terrible sad news. I have had enough of this year now. #sgtpepper2016 pic.twitter.com/f09uHVLrs8

— christhebarker (@christhebarker) December 29, 2016

As well as celebrities, the artist also decided to include a photo of murdered MP Jo Cox, asking people to consider making a donation to her memorial fund.

He created the first version of the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band-style tribute in November, on the night of the US election vote, including stars such as David Bowie, Prince and Gene Wilder in the original design.

In a blog post, he admits that he mistakenly included Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister, who died in 2015, in the image.

Here are the answers #sgtpepper2016 #curseof2016 #noharambe
(thanks to @barbarossa69 ) pic.twitter.com/tUwr69YTpG

— christhebarker (@christhebarker) December 13, 2016

"What a year, I was thinking, David Bowie, Brexit and now this," he explained. "A lot of people speculate that Bowie was actually the glue that was holding the universe together.

"It's certainly been a bit different since he tragically passed away. So I thought that since I was going to be up for hours anyway, I might do a montage that summed up how weird a year it's been."

I'm really sorry everyone. This is so sad. I feel awful. #RIPCarrieFisher #sgtpepper2016 May the force be with 2017. pic.twitter.com/3HJM8mJPVQ

— christhebarker (@christhebarker) December 27, 2016

I mean is this actually happening or is it some sick joke?

— christhebarker (@christhebarker) December 27, 2016

He added: "It wasn't going to be a montage of dead celebrities in the style of Sgt Peppers at first. In fact the Sgt Pepper element came quite late.

"Initially I was going to have Bowie in the centre and everything else orbiting around him but then I found the full length shot of Bowie that you see on the final piece and it looked so Sgt Pepper I thought I might as well go with that idea."

Since the image has been shared by thousands online, the artist has updated it to include other celebrities who have died in 2016, with his latest version including Fisher and George Michael.

"I think I caught the mood of the nation. People were a bit in shock about the American election result, a lot of people were down about it and wanted to share something that reflected how they felt, but they didn't want necessarily to share anything Trumpy. They were sick of seeing his face."

Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher. Photo / AP

Why does he think it was so successful?

"Influencers were up late on Twitter and nothing much was happening at first. Most people will have checked social media first thing early that morning. A weird day where people were awake at weird times and in an unusually interactive mood."

He adds: "I caught exactly the right moment. It wasn't intentional ..."

This article was originally published by The Telegraph.