For the next two weeks, here on LosAngelesAlleys.com, we’re going to try something a bit different. Usually, we run one shot each post depicting a beautiful part of the city, reveling in the single majesty of forgotten parts of this city. This week and next, for a change, we’re going to run photographs each day from two different photographers featuring a themed take on alleys.
We start with Taylor Fitz-Gibbon, a graduate student at UCLA, who emailed us a series of photographs of skateboarders in alleys. We’ll continue next week with Barry Gillfry, a photographer whose pictures reflect a solitude and peace – in alleys – that can be hard to find in the hustle of a big city.
Taylor takes it from here:
Highland Park | Photo via Taylor Fitz-Gibbon, used with permission
I grew up here in LA exploring the streets on a skateboard. As a skateboarder, you are intimately connected to the physical city. You pay ridiculously close attention to the fine-grained forms and textures of the urban landscape. It becomes second nature. You are also in-tune with the psychology of different city spaces. Abandoned, undefined, dead spaces repel others, but offer respite for skateboarders who always feel on-edge in more controlled spaces. Alleyways are a prime example of the type of neglected space in which skateboarders feel most comfortable. – Taylor Fitz-Gibbon
More tomorrow…
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