Pierre-Yves Cruaud is a French visual artist with a background in film studies, which he pursued from 1993 to 1996. His artistic practice centers around the still image as a space for imaginary and sensory exploration. Rather than capturing the world as it appears, Cruaud seeks to represent it as he imagines it, using photography to evoke inner experiences and emotional landscapes.

His images are marked by a minimalist theatricality that challenges realism. Carefully staged yet enigmatic, they invite viewers to identify with the scene while simultaneously unsettling expectations. Cruaud’s work often revolves around the concept of metamorphosis, a recurring metaphor for transformation, uncertainty, and psychological depth. His photographs suggest moments suspended between states, where the familiar becomes strange and the static becomes dynamic.

In his recent series In the Folds of the Night, Cruaud explores the idea of a world trapped in darkness, a metaphorical prison inhabited by fragmented bodies, felled trees, and broken moulds. These inhabitants, though motionless, seem to be waiting, anxiously or silently, for transformation. The series reflects his ongoing interest in the defense mechanisms of the psyche and the existential stillness before change.

Eight images from In the Folds of the Night were selected for the BBA Photography Prize and were previously featured in a solo exhibition curated by HeeJung Kim at the DongGang Museum of Photography in South Korea in 2024.

Exhibitions

2026

While the Shadows Dream Upright, Solo, BBA Gallery, Berlin, GermanySolo Exhibition, Competa Photo Days, Competa, SpainIPFA Award Finalists’ Group Show, Group Exhibition, Sala Golfes – Centre Cívic Pati Llimona, Barcelona, Spain

2025

Group Exhibition, Hoxton Arches, London, UKBBA Photography Prize 2025 Shortlist Exhibition, Group Exhibition, Kühlhaus Berlin, Berlin, GermanyGroup Exhibition, Valid World Hall Gallery, Barcelona, SpainGroup Exhibition, Serafio Complex, Athens, Greece

2024

The International Open Call Artist of the Year, Solo Exhibition, DongGang Museum of Photography (22nd DongGang International Photo Festival), Yeongwol, South Korea Curator: HeeJung KimGroup Exhibition, Center of the Mediterranean Architecture, Chania, Greece

2023

Group Exhibition, Sage Gallery, Bangkok, ThailandGroup Exhibition, Bargehouse Gallery, London, UKHonorable Mention Showcase, Group Exhibition, PH21 Gallery, Budapest, HungaryGroup Exhibition, The Glasgow Gallery of Photography, Glasgow, UKBlack & White Athens Photography Festival, Group Exhibition, Athens, Greece

Awards

2026

Epex Photo Awards – Photographer of the Year: Free Subject

2025

BBA Photography Prize – 1st PrizeMonoVisions Photography Awards – 1st Place: Black & White Fine Art Series YearInternational Photography Festivals Association Award – FinalistTokyo International Foto Awards – Silver: Fine Art (Other Category)Monochrome Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: ConceptualAnnual Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Conceptual)Neutral Density Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Conceptual Category)Exposureoneawards – Honorable Mention: Conceptual ("In the folds of the night" Series)International Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Other) ("In the folds of the night" Series)European Photography Awards (EPA) – Gold Winner: Black & White Photography (Fine Art Series Category)Imacres Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art PhotographyPrix de la Photographie, Paris (Px3) – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Other) ("In the folds of the night" Series)22nd Pollux Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art11th Fine Art Photography Awards (FAPA) – Nomination: Fine Art Series

2024

GS International Photography Awards – Winner: Fine Art (Series Category)Annual Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Conceptual) ("In the folds of the night" Series)Monochrome Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine ArtND Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Conceptual Category)LensCulture Emerging Talent Photography Awards – Editors’ PickPrix de la Photographie, Paris (PX3) – Honorable Mention: Fine ArtMonochromatic Awards – FinalistMonoVisions Awards – Honorable Mention: Conceptual Series CategoryDohdo Magazine Portrait Awards – FinalistKolga Award – Shortlisted: Conceptual Series ("In the folds of the night")Blue Koi Gallery Fine Art Photography Competition – 2nd Place10th Fine Art Photography Awards – Nomination: Conceptual Series

2023

Monochrome Photography Awards – Honorable Mention: ConceptualEPEX Awards – Honorable MentionND Awards – Honorable Mention: Fine Art (Nudes Series)Prix de la Photographie, Paris (PX3) – Bronze: Fine ArtMonoVisions Awards – 3rd Place: Nudes Series9th Fine Art Photography Awards – Nomination: Nudes Category