I struggled for longer than I care to admit about creating an appropriate first post in this blog. I felt inundating a reader with my general design sensibilities seemed too forward for a first go, but then a random recount of what inspired me from this month's Elle Decor seemed both abstract and generic as well. It struck me while reading the brilliant architectural photographer Julius Shulman's obituary in the LA Times last week that he would be the perfect subject to highlight as the first of many posts in my new attempt at self-expression.
I became aware of Shulman's work at the age of 12 on a perfect sunny day during my very first trip to Los Angeles. While the extreme significance of that trip in my life is best left for a later post(s), I would be remiss to say I wasn't captivated, or possibly spellbound might be a better adjective, with the City of Angels. It was during this trip that I saw Shulman's most infamous photograph, "Case Study # 22.", pictured above. In my mind, this photo quintessentially defines the romanticism of Los Angeles in it's most golden age, the middle of the twentieth century.
It was an image so evocative that it made me decide one day, without question, I would move to Los Angeles. I wanted to be that girl perched high above the blanket of big city lights below. And now, all these years later, to some extent, I am some version of that girl.
Shulman came to define in his iconic photos of mid-century architecture what would later be coined "California Modernism." His work made architects like Richard Neutra, Charles Eames, John Lautner and Pierre Konig household names. The depth of his photos would also illustrate what makes Los Angeles and California in general unlike any other place in the world.
Shulman died last week in Los Angeles at the age of 98. To learn more about his life and career, check out Taschen's amazing book Julius Shulman, Modernism Rediscovered.
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