Wednesday, February 24, 2010
crenshaw boulevard + martin luther king, jr. boulevard (I)
MLK Boulevards around America get a bad rap. They run through poorer areas, forming scar lines across neighborhoods with histories of gentrification and racial tension. Chris Rock has cracked jokes about the street name, saying "it ain't the safest place to be." All this criticism seems unfair + overly harsh; just minutes from the location in this photo, for example, you can find The Jim Gillian Recreation Center, of LA's nicest parks featuring tennis courts, soccer pitches, baseball diamonds, and putting greens, as well as the massive Crenshaw Plaza shopping mall. Here at street level, however, it's a tough sell — seven lanes flow fast + furious past long, "dead" stretches of buildings that either lack interfaces for foot traffic or sit aloof behind intimidating parking setbacks, effectively killing street life. And everyone knows that a lack of street life breeds suspicion + fear, like the street crosser hiding his face in the before photo, or the mistrustful bus-watcher to his right. I'm just a photographer, people — and if I were one among hundreds of people on another, better-populated street, you wouldn't even give me a second glance. See it narrowed!
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- friday favorites: hanbury road, london
- melrose avenue + gower street
- crenshaw boulevard + martin luther king, jr. boule...
- reader request: colorado boulevard + mount royal d...
- reader request: eagle rock boulevard + yosemite dr...
- friday favorites: sitges, spain
- reader request: huntington drive + san marino aven...
- reader request: sunset boulevard + virgil avenue
- 6th street + park view street, macarthur park
- larchmont boulevard
- friday favorites: the narrowest street in the world
- abbot kinney boulevard, venice
- reader request: huntington drive + san marino ave (I)
- red light stop, green light go, yellow light gun i...
- 6th street + lorraine boulevard, hancock park
- reader request: san gabriel boulevard near hunting...
- streetfilms' latest video: the new times square
- friday favorites: olvera street, los angeles
- 3rd street + the grove drive
- reader request: grand avenue + 1st street (northwe...
- individuality, capitalism, + lawn care: upon readi...
- camden avenue + massachusetts avenue, westwood
- ► January 2010 ( 23 )
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About the Photographer
- David Yoon
- Los Angeles, CA, United States
-
Writer, designer, and urban planning geek.
Got a location idea or photo submission? Send it to hello@davidyoon.com. I'll post it to the blog or even run out to shoot it myself.
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All content © David Yoon and Narrow Streets: Los Angeles.