Floral designer Eric Buterbaugh is known for his inventive arrangements, but this month his Los Angeles gallery has gone into the weeds with an exhibition of photographs depicting various plant species that have long been considered undesirable by many gardeners. Photographer Lekha Singh‘s series of lush botanical shots captures the plants in their natural environments with the sort of lighting and composition generally reserved for images of manicured gardens. The artist, who is known for her photojournalism work depicting refugees, nomads, and far flung tribes, spent the past year training her analog and digital lenses on common weeds. Buterbaugh’s gallery is the first to host the entire body of work, and Singh says the Los Angeles space’s “botanic and warm spirit is a great envelope for it.” Here, Singh and Buterbaugh discuss the humble weed.

What drew you to this body of work? EB: I loved the series when I saw photos, but when I saw the weeds pieces in person I could not believe what I was seeing. They are magic, the calm and poetry shows.

Did you know each other previously? EB: This was my first introduction to Lekha, and she is like her work. When you meet her it is also magic. Beauty and love shine out of her and then you see a twinkle of fun in her eye and a hint of a naughty sense of humor.

How have you used plants considered to be weeds in your floral work? EB: The current fashion in flowers happens to be a bit more weedy and garden like, so these timeless pieces are also current.

You’ve trained your lenses on so many subjects, what drew you to common weeds? LS: They are the humblest of plants, marginalized, plucked and thrown, imperfect, regarded as a nuisance, to be destroyed, but they have an incredible perfect beauty in them. I am exploring the Japanese concept of Wabi-Sabi in my work right now. Which is the idea that there is incredible beauty in that which is transient, or fades away and that which is imperfect. I want to disruptive common ideas of beauty.

Did you look up plant names and search for particular types of weeds or just shoot what caught your eye? LS: I am not interested in the labels and names of the weeds as I want a fresh eye on them.

Where did you shoot the weeds shown in your images? LS: I have photographed this series around the world. From Ibiza to Kenya to Oregon.

By Elizabeth Varnell

Pictured: An image from Weeds, Lekha Singh’s 2015 photography series.
Photo by Lekha Singh

Email This To A Friend