honorable mention
nicolas auvray united states
title
Night Attractions - NYC
“Attractions Nocturnes” is a series of night photographs. Walking through the cities at night, I have learnt that to me night is not a “time of day” but is a radically strange space within which our perception of reality is changed. Familiar places are re-discovered, figures appear and disappear in the darkness where metamorphosis and transitions take place. In these images, the city is a metaphor. Whether it is Paris, Stockholm or New York- spectators are invited to explore other worlds and be transported in dreamlike scenes to follow their aspirations, and maybe, deeper, darker passions and to look further into their identities.
Here, public gardens appear as gentle havens and twisted trees signal the way to Eden for the lonesome urban inhabitants, bringing tenderness and unexpected solace into the familiar experience of solitude. Beyond extraordinary, there are too many dark voids for us to feel completely comfortable with the aesthetic component. Transitional spaces and desolate zones—doors, stairways, bridges, and tunnels—bring us face-to-face with a symbolic dimension that invites us on a course of nocturnal wandering or a temporary escape into a world that is affecting, perplexing, mesmerizing and even menacing”.
Using medium and large format film camera and a darkroom to print my photographs, I rely on traditional photographic materials to capture these realities and compliment this process.
in various countries around the world (USA, China, Austria,
Australia and Singapore), he moved to New York in 2005 where
he currently lives.
Nicolas has been a photographer for 25 years; first as an amateur
but eventually making it his full-time occupation. He studied at
the International Center of Photography (I.C.P.) in New York
where he still collaborates as an assistant to master printers.
For his work, he uses analogue cameras (medium and large
format) and prints primarily in the traditional darkroom in
paris and in New York.
In 2015, a selection of his work is entering the photography
collection of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF). The
BnF is one of the foremost collections of photographs and
prints in the world.
In France Nicolas Auvray is represented by Gallery HEGOA, Paris.
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entry description
My work is a search to capture the extraordinary atmosphere of dreamlike realities. It is a sensuous exploration of the day and night where I use both the light as well as the “set” of reality to create a theatrical presence. My project of night photographs is ongoing and is composed of several independent and complete portfolios. The images proposed here are from “Night Attractions”.“Attractions Nocturnes” is a series of night photographs. Walking through the cities at night, I have learnt that to me night is not a “time of day” but is a radically strange space within which our perception of reality is changed. Familiar places are re-discovered, figures appear and disappear in the darkness where metamorphosis and transitions take place. In these images, the city is a metaphor. Whether it is Paris, Stockholm or New York- spectators are invited to explore other worlds and be transported in dreamlike scenes to follow their aspirations, and maybe, deeper, darker passions and to look further into their identities.
Here, public gardens appear as gentle havens and twisted trees signal the way to Eden for the lonesome urban inhabitants, bringing tenderness and unexpected solace into the familiar experience of solitude. Beyond extraordinary, there are too many dark voids for us to feel completely comfortable with the aesthetic component. Transitional spaces and desolate zones—doors, stairways, bridges, and tunnels—bring us face-to-face with a symbolic dimension that invites us on a course of nocturnal wandering or a temporary escape into a world that is affecting, perplexing, mesmerizing and even menacing”.
Using medium and large format film camera and a darkroom to print my photographs, I rely on traditional photographic materials to capture these realities and compliment this process.
about the photographer
Nicolas Auvray was born in France. After several years livingin various countries around the world (USA, China, Austria,
Australia and Singapore), he moved to New York in 2005 where
he currently lives.
Nicolas has been a photographer for 25 years; first as an amateur
but eventually making it his full-time occupation. He studied at
the International Center of Photography (I.C.P.) in New York
where he still collaborates as an assistant to master printers.
For his work, he uses analogue cameras (medium and large
format) and prints primarily in the traditional darkroom in
paris and in New York.
In 2015, a selection of his work is entering the photography
collection of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF). The
BnF is one of the foremost collections of photographs and
prints in the world.
In France Nicolas Auvray is represented by Gallery HEGOA, Paris.
back to gallery
