This subterranean world depicted in these photographs engenders a romantic quality linking it to the ancient catacombs found below many European cities. In past centuries these were vitally important, unregulated places of self-expression; the fabled underground of politics and literature.
I stumble on this place by chance while taking a walk along the side of the LA River. I climb through an opening in a gate and find myself in a strange and deserted stage-like place.
A soft yet distinct ambience is created by indirect cool daylight filtering into this clandestine realm, mixing at times with a strong golden brown bounce from the massive concrete walls lining the LA River bed. An occasional beam of sunlight penetrates through an opening above, creating a stark contrast to the muted lighting below.
The cavernous space is a few hundred feet long and fifty feet wide, and divided into chambers formed by colossal concrete pylons that hold up the street above. Vibrant competing graffiti styles cover these structures as they rise out of exposed bedrock or crushed dirt.
Like the catacombs, this remote area is not conveniently accessed. Here the taggers paint only for themselves. There is a fair amount of technique which goes into making these pictographs. The raw concrete walls are primed and prepared before they become canvas and are covered with dazzling arrays of fluorescent paints.
Apart from the taggers, this place is also frequented by a few homeless souls. They distribute the debris (spray cans, beer bottles, the carcasses of automobiles) into balanced arrangements, creating a peculiar visual link between the walls and the surrounding environment.
It is a strange place - some would say desolate. To me it holds great beauty. This is a thoroughly Los Angeles underground, a makeshift catacomb of pure artistic expression.
I shot these images with a mid-format Mamiya RB 67, using Kodak Portia NC 160 film. I used no artificial lighting while shooting and no Photoshop in post=production.
J.C.S. JUNE 2010
