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Rise and Sprawl: How Los Angeles Came To Be
A pictorial history of the world's most enigmatic city
From the first known photograph taken in Los Angeles to its most
recent sweeping vistas, this photographic tribute to the City of
Angels provides a fascinating journey through the city's
cultural, political, industrial, and sociological history. It
traces the city's development from the 1880s' real estate boom,
through the early days of Hollywood and the urban sprawl of the
late 20th century, right up to the present day. With over 500
images, L.A. is shown emerging from a desert wasteland to
become a vast palm-studded urban metropolis.
Events that made world news including two Olympics, Bobby Kennedy's
assassination, and the Rodney King riots reveal a city of many
dimensions. The entertainment capital of the world, Hollywood, and
its celebrities are showcased along with many other notable
residents, personalities, architects, artists, and musicians. The
city's pop cultural movements, its music, surfing, health food
fads, gangs, and hot rods are included, as are its notorious crimes
and criminals. This book depicts Los Angeles in all its glory and
grit, via hundreds of freshly discovered images including
those of Julius Shulman, Garry Winogrand, William Claxton
and many other superb photographers, culled from major historical
archives, museums, private collectors, and universities. These are
given context and resonance through essays by renowned California
historian Kevin Starr and Los Angeles literature expert
David Ulin.
About the editor:
Cultural anthropologist and graphic design historian Jim
Heimann is Executive Editor for TASCHEN America, and author of
numerous books on architecture, pop culture, and the history of the
West Coast, Los Angeles and Hollywood. His unrivaled private
collection of ephemera has featured in museum exhibitions around
the world and dozens of books.
Los Angeles: Portrait of a City (Taschen)Reviewed by BlogOnBooks, 2009-12-31
As long time Angelenos, we were certainly excited to receive our
invitation to Taschen Books headquarters for the new release party
for their latest coffee table opus `Los Angeles - Portrait of a
City.' While partying with the Hollywood elite (Diane Keaton, Hugh
Hefner, Jerry Bruckheimer, David LaChappell, Rodney Bingenheimer,
various politicos, etc.) and being serenaded by hometown music from
the Doors, Mamas and Papas, the Go-Go's and others, we celebrated
the release of Jim Heimann and Kevin Starr's new 572 page
exhibition of the colorful photographic history of the Los Angeles
basin.
In this heavyweight book, readers are treated to nearly all the
glorious history of the City of Angels from it's very beginnings as
an oil and orange grove mecca, thru the war years, the Hollywood
years, the earthquakes, the riots and beyond. And while the book
chronicles numerous LA icons (the architecture of Frank Lloyd
Wright, Richard Neutra, Frank Gehry and the Case Study House; the
famous buildings of Ciro's, the Brown Derby, the Hollywood Bowl,
Capitol Records, Grauman's Chinese, the Beverly Hills Hotel, the
Watts Towers, as well as the Dodgers arrival at the L.A. Coliseum,
JFK's 1960 convention, RFK's assassination, OJ's car chase, Rodney
King and more...) as well as the world famous personalities (the
MGM players, James Dean, Cecil B. DeMille, Marilyn Monroe, Jayne
Mansfield, the Beach Boys, Hugh Hefner and Joni Mitchell) and
artists (Billy Al Bengston, Dennis Hopper, Helmut Newton, David
Hockney's pool at the Hollywood Roosevelt and clips from Ed
Ruscha's masterpiece `Every Building on the Sunset Strip, 1966),
there are still significant gaps in the author's coverage.
One does wonder where some of the more recent luminaries of LA
disappeared to within these pages. There are, for example, no
photos of sports greats Sandy Koufax, Magic Johnson or NBA logo
model, Jerry West, nor L.A. superstars like Jack Nicholson, Mickey
Mouse or the Dreamworks triumvirate, no Johnny Carson or TV game
show hosts or four time mayor Tom Bradley, and, in fact, very
little or no depiction of the twin L.A. Olympics, the Beatles at
the Hollywood Bowl or the most recent years of LA fame and glory
(the Queen Mary, Staples Center, The Grammys, Kodak Theatre, Red
Hot Chili Peppers, Pink's, etc. - there are so few photographs
taken since the year 2000 that the book has a
dated-right-off-the-press feel.) In fact, one might have to squint
to even find legends like Jack Warner and Walt Disney within these
pages.
Though light on descriptive captions, Kevin Starr's text is quite
comprehensive and the book does a magnificent job of referencing a
reasonable number of additional L.A. inspired movies, books and
records in its back page indexes, leaving anyone who wants to earn
a masters degree in the city's stature with hours of resources to
indulge their every whim. The English language book, which bills
itself as the most complete photographic collection ever done on
L.A., is translated into German and French as well. Ultimately, a
fine collection, but not without some significant gaps. - [...]
LAReviewed by Benjamin Rowe, 2009-12-10
This is a phenomenal book about Los Angeles. Beyond being a exquisite art book with stunning photographs, it is also an in-depth social history of the city. No stone is left unturned, every topic imaginable is included. The level of research and accuracy should also be commended - it's an ambitious book that succeeds on every level.
I'm lovin' itReviewed by Ryan, 2009-12-06
I am a Northern California native, but moved to Los Angeles 10 years ago. This is a great book for anyone who wants to know more about a city that is often accused, mostly by outsiders, of being shallow, one-dimensional or soulless. It provides a unique glimpse into the real Los Angeles, one that is rich in history, complex and ever-changing. Great book. Highly recommended...
a new perspective on a fascinating cityReviewed by A. Goel, 2009-12-04
As a Bay Area resident, LA has always been a curious object of my attention. The glamour and grit of LA shines through in this majestic work which peels back the layers of this fascinating city. I haven't been able to put the book down since I purchased it and I sincerely expect that all of these fantastic images will keep me busy for weeks to come. Taschen has really done something incredible here.
Truly SpecialReviewed by Joshua, 2009-12-04
As a Los Angeles history buff, I have many books on the city but this one is truly special. It is not the same tired collection of photographs you have seen in so many other publications. Taschen has collected unique images of all the sites you have always wondered about or have seen remnants of. I am particularly fond of the vintage maps which are truly inspiring. Moreover, Taschen's well known large image format creates an amazing and unique experience for the reader. Jim Heimann has really done it! It's truly a special book.
