Jens Krauer is a Zurich-based street and documentary photographer whose work examines the structures and rhythms of everyday life in urban space. For more than a decade, he has photographed on foot in cities including New York, Istanbul, Paris, Kyiv, and Hong Kong, developing a visual language grounded in observation and compositional precision.
His street photography centers on the “decisive moment” — brief alignments of gesture, light, and proximity that reveal subtle social relationships within public environments. His images are characterized by layered compositions and a disciplined approach to framing, allowing complex urban situations to resolve into coherent visual narratives.
In December 2024, he published his first monograph, In Plain Sight – Candid Urban Encounters, with Kehrer Verlag. The book consolidates ten years of street photography into a cohesive body of work shaped by sustained engagement with public space.
In parallel, Krauer has developed documentary projects in Ukraine, focusing primarily on a volunteer battalion on the Donbas / Donetsk frontline. Additional work addresses displaced civilians in Lviv, the aftermath of fighting in Hostomel, and the atmosphere of Chernobyl before and during the war. Across these projects, the focus remains on individual experience and the structural conditions shaping daily life in regions affected by conflict.
Krauer’s photographs have been exhibited across Europe and the United States. He is a Leica photographer and a lecturer at the Leica Akademie, where he conducts workshops and seminars on street photography, concentrating on visual perception, situational awareness, and the articulation of an independent photographic position.
Through both street and documentary practice, Jens Krauer’s work reflects an ongoing inquiry into how human presence is configured within social space and historical circumstance.
References International
Treviso Photographic Festival 2022 (Jury Member)
OFF Foto Festival (Germany) 2025
References Switzerland
Photo Schweiz 2023
Solo Show IPFO 2023
Photo Schweiz 2025 Special Showcase
Solo Show Lichthof (public space) Zürich 2025
VHS Gallery Stuttgart Solo Show
Interviews & Features
The Phoblographer - Jens Krauer / becoming a street photographer
Street Photography Magazine: Jens Krauer: Embracing the Evolution
Fotointern - Jens Krauer - Die letzen Tage vor dem Krieg in der Ukraine
Fotointern - Jens Krauer - Book Review “In Plain Sight”
Fujifilm Journal - Fotoreportage aus der Ukraine von Jens Krauer
FAZ Frankfurter Allgemeine Book Review
Ted Forbes - The Art of Photography
Hugh brownstone - Jens Krauer - More than a Photographer in Ukraine
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