The magazine of the photo-essay
December 2016 issue
by Suzanne Stein
“A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine. Fabulous!”
Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker
These images are a sample of the ongoing series that I am working on which I hope provides a glimpse of the varied
and intense street life that characterizes the Historic Core in Downtown Los Angeles and Skid Row. Some of the
images are excerpts from several series that I've done with people that I'm documenting on an ongoing basis. The
area is undergoing changes related to a slowly evolving process of gentrification which has softened some of the
edges but has not erased the raw, emotional and chaotic tension that can define life in these areas. In downtown Los
Angeles, it is possible to tell many stories and witness wildly varying emotions and circumstances.
This is Jerry, a longtime resident of Skid Row who was grievously injured by a rifle shot to the face some years back at
a bus stop. Despite a jaw dropping and intimidating facial injury, he's very easy to talk with and eager for
companionship and conversation. He too is regularly bullied and robbed of his few possessions.
6th and Gladys Avenue, ice cream truck. From a short series studying a few moments in the daily life of a woman who
lives a nomadic life in this neighborhood. It is a very hot day, and people cluster around the ice cream truck parked in
the heart of Skid Row. Some chaotic circumstances prevented me from learning this woman's name...I know only that
she had been injured, and that her cup of ice was a prize to be cherished on this scorching day.
Man stares angrily at his reflection as he holds a knife. This photo captures the edgy, unpredictable nature of the
changing streets in downtown LA as residents of Skid Row and newly minted residents of a gentrifying city collide.
A woman I photographed taking a break to smoke. Open drug use is very common in Downtown Los Angeles,
particularly in Skid Row.
Sunday on San Julian Street....various religious groups, from large and highly organized groups to individuals who are
motivated to come to this impoverished and difficult street in Skid Row to provide a meal, prayer, and a Sunday service
to the residents.
A woman that I've been photographing periodically shows her scar from a knife attack a few months prior. She has a
gentle nature, and is regularly bullied, beaten, and robbed of her few possessions by other men and women living in
nearby tents. She suffers from mental illness and addiction.
This is Willie, a blind and homeless resident of Skid Row who has a gentle and endearing presence and depends on
the kindness of strangers and neighborhood residents to make his way safely through Skid Row. This photo
represents to me the social paradox and contradiction that is downtown Los Angeles.
Bridget, a woman that I profiled on her daily recycling tour of Skid Row.
Street scene outside The Alexandria, an SRO, in downtown Los Angeles at 5th and Spring streets. People regularly
congregate and socialize outside the various SROs that populate DTLA, giving the streets character and tension.
A young woman that I see regularly wandering the streets, at times shoeless, in an anguished disarray and clearly in
need of intervention as her mental illness places her frequently in jeopardy.
Street scene outside The Alexandria, an SRO, in downtown Los Angeles at 5th and Spring streets. People regularly
congregate and socialize outside the various SROs that populate DTLA, giving the streets character and tension.
Portrait of a man near 4th and Main Street, Los Angeles.
Portrait on Broadway, DTLA.
Street scene, Broadway.
Portrait, Winston Street in Los Angeles. A woman with her dog named Spirit, who she took possession of after the
previous owner was found dead.
Young woman agesturing angrily at the presence of the police
car in the background. In her left hand she holds children's
balloons stuffed and rolled with heroin, one of which is approx.
a day's worth of the drug. It's frequently sold packaged in
these little, colorful balloons which can be seen at times
littering the sidewalks.
Arrest at Spring Street and 7th, DTLA. A man is arrested for causing a serious disturbance on the bus that stops at this
corner.
Street scene.
Los Angeles Street, Skid Row at 5th Street. Three blind men pause briefly as they make their way with linked arms,
walking in tandem.