Ryan Cavalier -- Genius Loci

Think about what L.A. feels like to you. What is it that makes you know you’re here. In other words, when you think about L.A. what do you think of?

# 375 (Sun Half-Set on The Cowboy Couch)

Los Angeles sets the cowboy, hero of the West, half-warm from the now waning sunset, in the foreground. Scattered in the distance, which once proudly stood as the unconquered, an un-tethered beast, lies the soggy remains of westerners come to perish. The shuttered reality outsiders once drank from beckoning hands emblazoned with “The Times” has since been hacked to pieces by the light of day, and the feelings of Western comfort once rested upon by Angeleno and outsider alike, unveils its woven, textured colors.

Alec Manhattan

Los Angeles is an ultimatum – win or go home, stumble, don’t fall. When I was taking this photo in Manhattan Beach, a place overlooking the water from a friend’s roof deck I saw an ultimatum come to life before me. Alec, a writer friend, was walking along the narrow deck edge, metaphorically straddling victory, staring down defeat by broken ankle. Beneath his tightrope stretch the decrepit shadows of people, dreams, actions come to pass. Above him stretch the bountiful potentialities people like Alec and myself flirt with. Nevertheless, to his fore stretches a line he teeters along half in certainty of himself, half in fear.

Sunned Glasses

Angelenos have very strong ocular muscles. I have never been glared at more, looked down upon, shunned, etc in any city. When I walk down the street – whether in Westchester, Downtown, in Venice or Beverly Hills – I feel the presence of others upon me; ‘the gaze’ some call it. Angelenos often wear sunglasses, a great metaphor speaking to the need to shut out what is harmful to your wellbeing. Living in Los Angeles comes with the notion that citizens may need to block out negative realities in order to have the privilege of enjoying the bounty that is LA. Notice how the lenses are worn, much like a windshield can tell a tale of distance by volumes of splatter, we too can ascertain the distance traveled, and the bullshit deflected by looking closely. We need to shield ourselves from the reality of traffic with waves of music, the heat of summer with good air-conditioning and the beach. The privilege of living in LA comes at a cost – much as the beachgoer won’t forget their shades, an Angeleno is equipped with iPod, car and air-conditioning.

Legs Gesture

In many American cities public transportation is a divider of class, a segregator of race and an institution with whom involvement carries a direct correlation with affluence or lack thereof. I took this photograph on a public bus because I enjoyed the color contrast between the brown and teal, and upon further analysis and reflection determined has deep symbolic value.

Limbs have a language of their own, and if my translation is correct the legs wearing boots aren’t very excited to see the teal high-tops. The color symbolizes race clearly, and hand placement says something to the effect that one’s presence brings uneasiness upon the other.

Los Angeles feels to me as a place where space is precious, and seemingly vital to our mental health as Angelenos. When on the freeway, getting too close can earn you the finger, or worse, a high-speed case of road rage. Wearing the wrong color, although in serious decline since the death of Tookie Williams, can get you into some turmoil. Parking in your neighbor’s spot is grounds for towing, and often in spite the offended won’t let you know they plan on towing until the deed has ben done. Angelenos are high-stress, cigarette smoking, woosa-saying, yoga-straddling, hike-digesting, chewed up and spat out humans – watch where you step.

Introspection by ISO

I walked out of my Westchester home fiddling with my camera, it had been a while since I had used it and I wanted to test how certain shutter speeds intersected with different ISO sensitivity settings. Basically I wanted to test how sensitive the image sensor in my digital camera is to light in various settings. I am an avid fan of contrast in life, music, and art. Coincidentally I found that when you shoot someone’s shadow on a bright day with high sensitivity – which ultimately blasts everything with sensitivity, leaving the shadow in stark contrast to how shadows normally look – you can make a statement. I shot this photo on my front lawn, back toward the westward ducking sun. This image transcends the way I feel about myself when I am in Los Angeles, amid the sun, the gaze, the smog, the culture, the attitude. I feel I must block out all negativity with positivity. With calculated blasts of light and sensitivity I can grow as, and into a genuine individual. With proper introspection in a land as rich in possibility as mis-steps, seldom will I abandon knowledge my shadow so blatantly affords me.