Education

• University of California, Los Angeles, B.A. (Expected 2026)

Select Awards & Recognition

• TIME Magazine Global Photographic Portraiture Competition, Winner (2024)

• The New York Times Coming of Age Contest, Winner (2020)

• Sony World Photography Awards, Shortlist (2022)

• Canon’s Eddie Adams Workshop, Class of XXXVII (2024)

• National YoungArts Competition, Winner in Photography (2022)

• 43rd Annual Telly Awards, Bronze Prize for Outstanding Student Film (2022)

• Diversify Photo, Up Next Photographer (2024)

• National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, Silver Medalist (2022)

• American Youth Film Festival, Jackie Award (2022)

• Martin Luther King Jr. Film Festival, Best Impact Film (2020)

• Princeton University, Collegiate Filmmakers Showcase, Best Student Film Nominee (2024)

• All American High School Film Festival, Nominee (2020)

• National YoungArts Foundation, Creative Grant (2024)

• Mometu College Shorts Film Festival, Best Foreign Language Film Nominee (2024)

• 23rd Annual National High School Poetry Contest, Winner

• Regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, Winner of 6 Gold Keys, 2 Silver Keys, 5 Honorable Mentions (2021-22)

• 40th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival, Nextwave Youth Competition Finalist

• Fearless, Youth Initiative Film Festival, Best Photography Prize (2021)

• 20th Annual Drexel University High Photography Contest, National Finalist

• Philadelphia Youth Film Festival, Special Jury Prizes in Screenwriting & Film (2021)

• Revolution Me Film Festival, Screenwriting Prize & Social Awareness Award (2021-2022)

• Our Voices Film Festival, Best PSA Finalist (2020)

• 60 Second Film Festival, Best Short Finalist (2020)

• Documentary Family Awards, Finalist in Photography (2021)

• ESMoA Video + Art Film Festival, Semi-Finalist (2020)

• Newark IFF Youth Film Festival, Semi-Finalist (2018)

Select Publications & Press

• “See the Winning Photographs From TIME and ASMP’s Global Portraiture Competition,” TIME Magazine

• “Coming of Age: Teens on a Year That Changed Everything,” Special Print Section, The New York Times

  • ​Available for Purchase on The New York Times Store

• “Coming of Age in 2020: Teenagers on the Year That Changed Everything” W.W. Norton & Company

  • ​Available for Purchase on Amazon.com

• ​“Teens on a Year That Changed Everything” The New York Times, The Learning Network

• “The Documentary and Art Photography of Christian Lee” Vogue Italia, PhotoVogue

• “​Anthology and Catalogue: Select Works by YoungArts Winners” National YoungArts Foundation

• ​“Rising Stars: Meet Christian Lee” LA’s Most Inspiring Stories, VoyageLA Magazine

• “The Black and White Imagery of Artist Christian Lee” The Adroit Journal, Volume 40

• “‘Til the Day Breaks: An Original Photo Series” Counterclock Journal, Issue 12

• “Celebrating Simplicity: Finding Beauty in the Commonplace” Los Angeles Times, High School Insider​

• “Introducing Christian Lee” Young Photographers International Collective

Select Group Exhibitions

• “The Care & Repair Project” UC Irvine School of Humanities, Irvine, California (2024)

• “Innovate24: The Black Innovation Summit” Center for Digital Transformation, Irvine, California (2024)

• “Kaleidoscope” Catalyst Undergraduate Art Gallery, Claire Trevor School of the Arts, Irvine, California (2023)

• “Shutter Hub’s Postcards from Europe” Alison Richards Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom ​(2022)

• ”Reel Exposure International Juried Teen Photo Exhibition” Trolley Barn Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, New York (2022)

• “20th Annual Drexel University High School Photography Contest” Antoinette Westphal College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2020)

Solo Exhibitions

• “The Come & See Project: A Year in Photos” ARC Gallery, La Habra, California (2022)

Select Screenings

• Golden State Film Festival, TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, California (2022)

• All American High School Film Festival, AMC Empire Theatre, Times Square, New York City (2021) *two projects*

• Princeton Film Festival, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey (2024)

• Adelaide Film Festival, Variety Magazine’s ‘Unmissable Festival,’ Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas, Adelaide, Australia (2021)

• Central Film Festival, The Moxie Theater, Springfield, Missouri (2021) *two projects*

• Emerging Lens Cultural Film Festival, Canadian Academy Awards Qualification, Canadian Museum of Immigration (2021)

• Scout Film Festival, ICA Seaport Studio, Boston, Massachusetts (2022)

• Kidz Hub Regional Film Festival, Old Bridge, New Jersey (2018)

• Brooklyn Shorty Film Festival, John D. McFadden, Sr. Young Filmmakers Competition, Virtual Screening (2020)

• Huntington Beach Cultural Cinema Showcase, Virtual Premiere (2020)

• Flicks Documentary Film Night, USVA Cultural Center, Groningen, Netherlands (2021)

• Lift-Off Global Network & First Time Filmmaker Sessions, Pinewood Studios, Iver, United Kingdom (2019-20) *four projects*

• Newark International Youth Film Festival, Supported by Panasonic, Newark, New Jersey (2018-20) *eight projects*​​

Professional Memberships

• Diversify Photo, Up Next Photographer

• Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), Member

• Film Independent, Member & Merit Scholarship Recipient

• Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Alumni Association, Member

• PwC US Alumni, Member

Lee’s favorite photographers and his earliest artistic influences include Dawoud Bey, Mark Steinmetz, RaMell Ross, Bryan Schutmaat, An-My Lê, Deana Lawson, Raymond Meeks, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Stacey Kranitz, Tommy Kha, Curren Hattleberg, Alec Soth, and Kristen Joy Emack.