Robert Carlos Clarke

Robert Carlos Clarke (1950–2006) was a British-Irish photographer renowned for his erotic, documentary, portrait, and commercial photography. Born in Cork, Ireland, he was educated in various English schools, including Wellington College. After working briefly as a journalist and in Belfast in 1969, Clarke moved back to England and studied at Worthing College of Art in West Sussex. He later enrolled in the London College of Printing and completed an MA in photography at the Royal College of Art in 1975. In the mid-1970s, Clarke moved to Brixton, London, where he began to photograph nudes, initially to make money. He worked with fellow students and produced images for publications like *Men Only* and *Club International*, which were part of the adult magazine industry. His first experience photographing fetish fashion, including rubber and latex, came when a man known as ‘The Commander’—a publisher of a fetish magazine—asked him to photograph for his publication. Clarke’s work was heavily influenced by the fetish scene, and he was often compared to the German photographer Helmut Newton for his provocative style. He also counted British pop artist Allen Jones, known for his fetish-themed work, as a friend. Despite Jones advising him to move away from the fetish scene, Clarke’s work remained synonymous with it. He became known as “the British Helmut Newton” due to his bold, erotic imagery that blurred the line between art and sexuality. Clarke’s legacy in the world of photography remains significant, particularly in the niche of fetish and erotic art, where his work is still celebrated for its artistry and daring approach to sexual themes.