Los Angeles, and why I love the LA Light so much

What really pulls me is the light in LA

I do not exactly know when my love for Los Angeles started but its started some time back. I think it began as a small boy sitting in front of the tv and watching those late night B Films, those aliens films produced by the masses in the 1950s, and a few of them would be filmed on the LA storm drain. It was on the storm drains of LA that those black and white 1950s alien films caught my imagination, and it was not until recently that I was taking some shots in the east London docks that I realize the similarities in both locations. 

I can not wait to be bathed in that low lit LA sun, sit on a corner Cafe and just let time stand still and let the sun do the dancing, let those long dark shadows play king amongst the buildings

What really pulls me is the light in LA, there are only a couple of places on this earth to have this light, one is LA, the south coast of England and in Greece, all light is the same I hear you say, no it's isn't, not to me. My journey to Los Angels started many years ago its only now that next year I will be seeing the place for real, I can not wait to be bathed in that low lit LA sun, sit on a corner Cafe and just let time stand still and let the sun do the dancing, let those long dark shadows play king amongst the buildings, an odd way to enjoy a fine Kaffee, not really for a rather creative and charismatic Englishman as me!!

Strolling around, looking and engaging with people is what being me is all about, I love it, some call me an artist, my dear Mother does but being an artist is about engaging with everything and everyone. I am a true Londoner, born and bred, my family has been in London since 1745, a long time and I know London like the back of my hand, and I know its attitude as well, every city has an attitude and I am sure that's true for Los Angeles. Some might say it the city of broken dreams, I vehemently disagree with that! I've heard that the city is where every waiter, a waitress is an aspiring actor, actress, well I will tell you this coming from an Artist, like the art world, acting is certainly not an easy vocation and it's certainly not for everyone! I did hear a great British actor Gary Oldman say if I get this right, that it took him 9 years to get a part, and that man has talent. It really is like saying I've been entertaining for the last 9 years to the wrong audience, and success is valued, quantified just like that, there an age-old saying that you should be in the right place at the right time, then the moral here is been at the right place more often!

The one street I love in LA is Sunset Boulevard, there's something so reminiscent of that street, it's me, I am sure its completely different but when one sees this street and others the sun is such that it bleaches any true colours, and the streets almost become black and white, here in London we do not have such strong light so the colour is more intense. Enough about LA sunlight, I really could go on for ages on this.

As an artist I have always been chasing the light, a painter must, I am always chasing contrast and my works are certainly strong and comprised with an unimaginable amount of contrast, and here too, we see a contrast in people from different cities. LA is the home of the actor in the US, I am sure the New Yorker will say otherwise, again, it's about light and contrast. LA has changed a lot indeed, property developers just like in London, have hiked property prices through the roof, an area of London I love and adore is Fitzrovia, its always been an artist area for years but now has it can boast some of the finest Cafes and Restaurants the property prices have gone through the roof. Just like London, LA is being developed and a new client will move in, its what happens but for whatever changes do happen in LA one thing is a constant, one thing is timeless, one thing the developers cannot alter, that's the LA light. The LA light is there, as is that corner Cafe and so is that chair that has been waiting a long time for an artist named Darren to sit on it and enjoy being part of that LA light. So, should you ever see a rather content man enjoying a fine Kaffee on a corner Cafe in LA, it just might be me, if you do, why not pull up a chair beside me and we can talk about LA. Until then!

#Los Angeles Light #LA #Fitzrovia #My journey to Los Angels #DARREN ROCKFORD-MURPHY # Sunset Boulevard