Gielen appreciate the geometry and patterns of suburban forms from above. A resident of Germany, he says that he finds the suburbs strangely un-American:
"It's so ironic because the United States touts itself as a place of limitless freedoms and the land of individuality and individual expression, but the lived experience is like a monoculture. It's weird. It's total sameness," the German-born photographer said."
CNN features a slideshow of images by Gielen, and the article includes interviews with Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk and Jeff Speck.