Fertile Photos

The work of photographer Paul Clark is rooted in suburban community gardens but his photos are anything but garden variety.

Taking photos of community gardens in his hometown of Arlington Heights, Clark started seeing human features in sunflowers like their leafy arms, sinewy necks and sad drooping heads.

Soon, Clark began seeing another trait in these personified plants: their unwillingness to submit to human control. His garden photographs reveal a natural world that defies fences and straight lines, blooming wildly out of control. With camera in hand, Clark digs into the relationship between plants and the many ways we try to control them.

Related Links

For other photogenic subjects, check out James Fraher's photographs of Chicago blues players.

See Clark's work at Columbia College's Museum of Contemporary Photographers Midwest Photographers Project.

Visit the Edelman Gallery in Chicago to see Clark's sunflower photographs.

Check out the Clark photos you may have missed elsewhere at Chicago's Bell Studio.