I headed out early on my expedition. The graffiti from Meeting of Styles was very visible from both sides of the San Fernando Bridge. In addition to the graffiti murals, where entire teams of spray artists work on one giant image, there are also random tags covering this entire neighborhood. Street gangs look to be ruling the roost down here. I’m not a fan of this dog-pissing type of spray that’s all about marking one’s territory. But the murals are different. The skill it takes to render these giant images is evident on close inspection. Mostly I inspected with my zoom as you can’t actually get down into the wash without considerable effort and agility.
Do me a favor will you? Just go LOOK at all the different kind of caps there are for spraying! Come on, it’ll only take you a second. Makes it easier to understand how they can render some of these details.
So there it was and I saw it and it was pretty cool to see that much concentrated stylized graffiti, but……..I was even more excited by the little jaunt I took up to the top of the freeway bridge that spans the LA River. It felt to me like I was wandering there among the BONES of the city. Oh, you have to really love a place to think this is something special. The bridge was built in 1937. I could go on and on about the stairs I climbed, the way you can climb up to the northbound side of the 110 and look down on the southbound side. Or the way the tunnels look up close, or how most of the LA River runs in this one deep channel, or the rumbling passenger trains on the adjacent bridge. How narrow the pedestrian walkway is. I stayed up thre awhile staring down at the river and the trains, the bridges. Thinking.
m.a. I love these sepias. The bones are such wonderful pics….and those RED numbers are right on the MARK! Great, great post. Thanks for sharing~
m.a. I love these b&w. The bones are such wonderful pics….and those RED numbers are right on the MARK! Great, great post. Thanks for sharing~
What a great mini-vacation to get to visit places as cool as this, even better, through your eyes. The murals are making my heart race, especially that clown! How cool to witness the dudes in action. (I’m high-fiving you for rad photoshop skills too)
Damn, I did it wrong again.I clicked back from my comment and it goes to my blog, not the email, sorry.
My email is gwen@healingbalancepassion.com
Hi Mary Ann,
I don’t know why the email address I had on my sign in didn’t work, but I put my personal email on this one. I don’t get these details of blogging sometimes.
thanks for your comment on my blog!
Gwen
I echo the others’ comments. I, too, love the bones of a citiy. And way cool numbers. How’d you do that? Photo program with great fonts?
madre de dios! you have outdone yourself.
the self portrait is a masterpiece. the look on your face is how you looked when you were 6 and you just got the last piece of cake and mom wouldn’t let us get near you so we could spoil it.
the bridge photos are Perfectly Perfect.
sigh…
I think I’ll go make another drink and look at them all again.
M — I LOVE what you have done with the photos that have the numbers. Are the numbers a computer font? Rubber stamp? Way cool! Also on the first photo with the swirls, I love the font there…. would you be willing to share what these fonts are called? Am loving your blog… 🙂
Amazing photos, love the color, the numbers, the evocative angles. So atmospheric. And caps. Now I need caps. Sheesh. I want to master the drips now. Will this madness never end?
I love your face. More face.
The sepia color of the photos is very effective but the addition of the red numbers is simply stunning! The absolute perfect touch. The size of the numbers, the color of red, the placement of the numbers – breathtaking.
I love nasty, dirty, gritty LA too. My town.
Your photos are fabulous. I grew up in Burbank and then lived in the La Crescenta-Glendale area recently, so these pictures are “home” photos to me. No, I didn’t sleep in the wash, but drove past it all the time and was always blown away by the art of the graffitti.
You are the best and most interesting blog around. Oh and did I mention FUNNY?
I totally love places like this, and I am so glad that you took these photos. Amazing. I am talking about the bridge built in 1937, great photos, and a great story.
Gwen