s shy of his birthday, meaning that at 21, he was already presenting his work on the international stage. Impressive much?

Hosted by the École Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie and The Luma Foundation, the Dior Beauty event showcased up-and-coming stars in the photography world playing on color, femininity, and beauty with the theme of “Woman-Women Faces.” The judges included none other than industry icons Peter Lindberg and Simon Baker.

“[Julien] was my favorite,” said Lindberg. “I think it’s one of the freshest—such an easy approach. He just took his camera and took a few friends.”

Baker agreed. “It’s really well done. You can see some references of Nan Goldin or intimate photography, but then he’s made the story, he’s engaged with the concept. He also made some of the clothes that the subjects are wearing, so he’s bringing in creativity in many ways. It’s a pretty sophisticated thing to do." I inquired what this type of international exposure could mean for such young creatives. "There are a lot of artists from China, from South Korea, and for them to be invited to come all the way here and see all of the things that are in the show is fantastic. It could be really life changing."

the three artistic directors of the House of Dior. Today, Dior decided to renew the experience by launching an unprecedented prize called the Dior Photography Award for Young Talents, in partnership with the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie and hosted by Luma Arles. Built around a mutual will for sharing and visionary boldness, this contest aims above all to be an international dialogue about young creation.