All images by Chris Hoare. Used with permission

“I hope my pictures in some way seduce people into these spaces”, says Chris Hoare about his latest project. Growing Spaces was conceptualized as an idea before the Covid-19 pandemic but had to be completely done under the UK lockdown restrictions. This unexpected turn of events coincided with an upsurge in public requirements for open gardening allotments, which greatly aided this photo documentary.

These images were taken between April and November of last year, at the height of the lockdowns in the UK. A system that originated in the 19th century, the demand for allotments have increased in popularity since the 2020 lockdown. More individuals and families have been turning to gardening to escape the drudgery of the ongoing pandemic. Such fertile spaces allow residents of the areas to grow their own produce at their own pace. These plots also became a sanctuary of sorts, as they were one of the few areas that people were allowed to visit during the lockdown. Many had been on waitlists for years to be able to use these plots. Chris’s methodical approach to photographing the allotment goers and their projects helped him closely bond with a number of them. He’s adapted his trademark ‘speculative documentary’ style of storytelling to this project. ‘Growing Spaces‘ is also currently available to purchase as a softcover from RRB Photobooks.

The Essential Photo Gear of Chris Hoare

Mamiya RB67

Mamiya 127mm lens

– Chris Hoare

“I used a Mamiya RB67 with a 127mm fixed lens, simple but heavy as you can imagine. I like the slowness and limitations of it, I also the way that camera renders the world, which for me this is quite important. For portraiture it’s great, I’ve always used waist level finder cameras and I like how this effects portraits, looking down as oppose[d] to looking at the person being photographed.

The Phoblographer: Talk to us about how you got into photography.

Chris Hoare: I found photography whilst studying art just after high school, whereby one module was being introduced to analogue processes. As cheesy or cliche as it sounds, it was sort of as soon I stepped into the darkroom I never looked back and haven’t really wanted to pursue a different career since.

The Phoblographer: I believe this photo project was conceptualized before the Covid-19 outbreak. Did a lot of rescheduling have to be done for working on it during the lockdowns? What was going through your mind?

Chris Hoare: The work was commissioned by Bristol Photo Festival, which is set to take place for the first time this year. Just like the festival itself, the commission was conceived before the pandemic, but as a result of it, the subject of allotments and growing gained an added layer of importance – with the sudden increase in popularity. I began making images at the beginning of April and finished in November, so it was almost entirely made throughout the lockdown restrictions. It felt important to be documenting this urge that society was having for the outdoors at such a historic moment, it was also fortunately something which was possible due to the nature of it all being outside. There were questions at the beginning of whether or not it was possible, but I decided to go with my gut and do it safely, allotments as mentioned were legally allowed to continue.

The Phoblographer: So what did you notice about the mental health of some of these folks? Were they doing this as a hobby? To survive? Did they just want to interact with other people?

Chris Hoare: It’s more than clear that gardening is good for your health and wellbeing, there was a study recently which stated all the benefits to having an allotment, which went far beyond just the physical health benefits, it noted “high levels of social and community activities, including sharing surplus food, knowledge exchange, awareness and interaction with wildlife, along with appreciation of time spent outdoors.” I’m sure all of the people featured in ...