Finding Beauty from Chaos
Award-winning photographer Clark Little was born in Napa, California in 1968. Two years later, a move to the North Shore of Oahu (Hawaii) dramatically changed his future. In the ’80s and 90’s, he made his name as a pioneer of surfing at the Waimea Bay shorebreak. Clark had a unique talent for taking off on hopeless closeout shorebreak waves and surviving in one piece.
In 2007, Clark discovered his ability and passion to capture the extraordinary beauty of the shorebreak when his wife wanted a picture of the ocean to decorate the bedroom wall. With the confidence of an experienced surfer, Clark went out and bought a waterproof camera setup, jumped in the ocean, and started snapping away, recording the beauty and power of Hawaiian waves. “Clark’s view” is a unique and often dangerous perspective of waves from the inside out, captured in photos for all to enjoy from the safety of dry land.
In a short time, Clark has gained worldwide recognition for his North Shore shorebreak wave photography with exhibitions in Japan, Canada, Brazil, Spain and throughout the US along with appearances on television shows including CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, The Today Show, Inside Edition, Discovery Channel, ABC World News Now, France 2, NHK and Asahi TV programs in Japan.
“The shorebreak is my comfort zone. I absolutely love it. It’s always different. The light, the colors, the water, the sand and what happens to it. And to be there to capture it and share it with the world… what a dream.”
– Clark Little
Clark’s work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian Museum, Alden B. Dow Museum, Science Museum of Virginia, Museum of Contemporary Art Barcelona (Spain), Parco Logos Gallery (Tokyo, Japan), Gallery X (Tokyo, Japan), Heritage Maritime Canada (Montreal, Canada), The Four Seasons and The Ritz-Carlton Resorts, and published in National Geographic, New York Times, LIFE, Nikon World, Paris Match, Outdoor Japan, Sierra, Geo, Nature’s Best Photography, Rangefinder, Surfer’s Journal among others. Commercial clients include Apple, Nike, Nikon, Facebook, Hewlett-Packard (HP), Toyota, Anheuser Busch, Starbucks Coffee, Whole Foods Markets, Panerai Watches, Hilton Hotels, Lockheed Martin, Verizon, and others.
In November 2009, Clark published his 182-page debut art book, The Shorebreak Art of Clark Little. In January 2011, Clark opened the Clark Little Gallery Haleiwa in his hometown of Haleiwa, Hawaii just down the road from many of the North Shore beaches featured in his photography. In February 2014, Clark published his second book Shorebreak, a 160-page coffee table book featuring wave and ocean photography from the North Shore of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Big Island, California, Japan and French Polynesia. In 2014, Clark also published a book in Japan “Waves of North Shore” (Parco Publishing). Most recently in 2016, the film SHOREBREAK: The Clark Little Story was released.
All content and rights are from Clark Little Photography