A repetitive walk: Pay phone hunting on Sunset Blvd

"In photography, the smallest thing can be a great subject. The little, human detail can become a Leitmotiv."
~Henri Cartier-Bresson

C. 2008 - 2011

Figueroa St to Silverlake Blvd

Premeditated walks

Most people that grow up in big cities are exposed to graffiti along with other forms of public defacing. I remember one of the reasons my family moved out of East LA in the late 90s was because the gang graffiti had leaked onto our block and a little too close for comfort. It wasn’t all bad. Some of which could be considered art was ugly and rushed, and other times it would consist of elaborate designs. It always got painted over, but it stayed up long enough where the neighborhood would have had a chance to see it.

During my time in the artists’ district in downtown, I noticed homemade stickers and spray painted stencils were the norm on street posts and signs. This didn’t bother me since I usually stop to read what the perpetrators want us to read. Most of them aren’t worth the time but like the occasional personalized license plate, some do make me laugh or chuckle or provoke thought.

Some of the things I've chosen to capture have deteriorated or got painted over. I guess the universal hope is that someone will notice your mark before it disappears.

6th and skid C.2009 Los Angeles, CA

"My behavior was completely unpremeditated. The morning light was enough to get me going, without rhyme or reason. Was it really reasonable to love whatever I happened to see? I never asked myself that question. Nor do I regret it, because once you start taking your alarm clock apart you no longer know what time it is...

6th and skid C.2009 Los Angeles, CA

...For half a century I pounded the cobblestones, then asphalt, of Paris, wandering up and down the city. This activity required no special physical prowess, Paris not being Los Angeles, thank heavens, and traveling by foot not considered a sign of poverty here".~Robert Doisneau

6th and skid C.2009 Los Angeles, CA