About
BIO
Kristina Varaksina is a visual artist working with lens-based media, moving between documentary portraiture and more experimental fine art practices. She earned her Master’s in Photography from the Academy of Art University, San Francisco, in 2013, and currently lives and works between London and Oslo.
Her work explores womanhood, identity, equality, and human rights, while examining vulnerability, insecurity, and the search for self as both a woman and an artist. She highlights the stories of marginalised groups, including people battling infertility, children with disabilities, individuals with physical differences, and women living with secondary cancer.
Through visual symbolism, refined colour palettes, and painterly lighting, Varaksina captures the emotional landscapes of her subjects, producing work that is both intimate and universal. She invites viewers to reflect on societal inequities and shared human experiences.
Awards and recognitions include Lens Culture, BJP Portrait of Britain and Portrait of Humanity, Aesthetica Art Prize and Photography for Humanity with the UN.
Commissions include: TIME Women of the Year – Yulia Navalnaya, Amal Clooney, Zahra Joya, The BBC – “The Real Mo Farah”, The Guardian – Diane Morgan, The Telegraph – David and Georgia Tennant, Harper’s Bazaar, Paper Magazine – Muslim Beauty Uncovered.
Upcoming Exhibition: Beauty through a Contemporary Lens – Bozar Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels. Opening March 6th 2026. Until August 16th 2026.
GET IN TOUCH
General Inquiries
BAILEY WADE photo agency
tom@peterbailey.co.uk
Editorial commissions, collaborations, other inquiries
studio@kristinavaraksina.com
Join my mailing list
AWARDS
BJP Portrait of Humanity 2024 Shortlist
BJP OPEN WALLS Arles Winner
BJP Portrait of Humanity 2023 Winner
BJP Portrait of Britain 2023 Shortlist
Aesthetica Art Prize 2023 Shortlist
BBA Portrait Photography 1st Prize
BJP Female in Focus 2022 Winner
Lens Culture Portrait 2022 Finalist
AOP Open Awards 2021 finalist
BBA Berlin 2021 3rd place Winner
Lens Culture Portrait 2021 2nd Place Winner
Portrait of Britain Winner 2020
Lens Culture Critics Choice 2020 Winner
BJP Portrait of Humanity 2020 Shortlist
AOP Open Awards 2020 Silver
IPA 2020 Honorable mention
PX3 Prix de la Photographie, Paris 2020. Portraiture: Personality, Bronze Communications Arts Photography Annual 2018
Int’l Photography Awards 2018 – Honorable Mention in Fine Art Portrait category
PX3 Prix de la Photographie, Paris 2018. Professional Portraiture: Children, Bronze
PX3 Prix de la Photographie, Paris 2017. Professional Portraiture: Children, Silver. Professional Portraiture: Other, Gold
Applied Arts Photography & Illustration Annual 2017
Communications Arts Photography Annual 2017
Int’l Photography Awards 2016 – Honorable Mention in Portrait, Fashion and Children categories
PX3 Prix De La Photographie Paris 2015 – 1st Place Advertising
Int’l Photography Awards 2015 – 1st Place in Beauty Category
Int’l Photography Awards 2015 – 2nd Place in Children Category
APA SF Something Personal 2014 1st Place
Communications Arts Best Creatives Annual ’55
Digital Photo Pro’s 2013 The Face 1st Place
PDN Faces Contest, 1st Place in Personal category
APA National Award 2013 1st Place Student work
APA 2013 EP Education Grant Award Winner
Digital Photo Magazine the 6th Annual Your Best Shot photo contest winner
Academy of Art University Spring Show 2012 – Best in Show single image
Academy of Art University Spring Show 2013 – Best in Show Portfolio, 1st Place single image
CMYK Magazine – 100 Best Young Creatives of 2012
Vogue.it BEST OF
EXHIBITIONS
Beauty through a Contemporary Lens – Bozar Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels. March – August 2026
Fotografiska and the University of Oxford, in collaboration with the UN and Right Here, Right Now – June 2025
The Let Down – London, June 2024
The Royal Photographic Society – International Photography Exhibition 165, Bristol, February 2024
Living With – WAVE For Change, London, October 2023
Open Walls BJP – Les Rencontres d’Arles, July-September 2023
Photoville New York June 2023
Aesthetica Future Now Exhibition March-June 2023
Foto Wien, March 2022
BBA Berlin, November–December 2021
PHOTO London 2021
Hello World Gallery Vienna, June–December 2020
Adam and Eve, London, November 2019
Berlin Photo Biennale 2016
Photography and Iterations, Cumberland Gallery May-June 2016
APA SF Something Personal December 2015
APA SF Something Personal December 2014
SPE “Off the Web” Fall 2014
APA Curator’s Voice Approaching the Unreal Group show, September 2014
AAF New York March 2014
SOLO SHOWS
Living With – WAVE For Change, London, October 2023
FUJIFILM House of Photography, London – October 2021
Brownie Photo Shanghai – May 2017
Cumberland Nashville – June 2016
Themes+Project San Francisco, CA April – May-July 2014
625 Sutter Gallery San Francisco March 2014
FEATURES
Future Now Aesthetica Anthology 2023
Medium Format Magazine 2023
BJP Portrait of Britain book 2023
BJP Portrait of Humanity book 2023
Aesthetica Magazine June/July 2021
BJP Portrait of Britain book 2020
BJP Portrait of Humanity book, Vol.2, 2020
Be Creative Magazine, Article Interview May 2018
World Photo Org, Article August 2017
#SHOP magazine Korea April 2017 Cover and article
Communication Arts: Fresh, February 2017
Aesthetica Magazine June/July 2016
#SHOP magazine Korea October 2016 Cover and article