True Topographics
Valley Epilogue

Photographs from the San Fernando Valley.
(North Hollywood/Van Nuys/Valley Village/Sherman Oaks)

2014-2026

When I initially relocated. I didn't really know what to expect. I had lived my entire life on the other side of the hill and my photography practice was based on documenting that part of the city. The longer I lived out there, I realized that I had access to a wholly different side of Los Angeles that I was completely unfamiliar with. What had stared as apprehension quickly shifted into excitement and I got to work...

It did take a while to find my rhythm photographing the Valley. Geographically it is very different from what I was used to and it's incredibly large. I had to explore quite a bit and adapt to a completely new atmosphere and daily rhythms.

Eventually, I discovered areas and neighborhoods that I would return to often. Like other parts of Los Angeles, gentrification is a huge factor and I documented the ongoing transformation of the landscape as well. The first half of my time in the San Fernando Valley was spent acclimating to this shift and solidifying themes and other ways to approach documenting this new side of L.A.

In the relatively short time that I lived in the San Fernando Valley, many of the neighborhoods that I photographed changed dramatically. Like other parts of the city, the impact of the pandemic and it's aftermath cannot be understated. Many shops and businesses closed down, then struggled to regain their footing once the situation stabilized.

The place that I moved to over a decade ago is largely already gone, replaced by some other version that has yet to be completed. Being immersed in the daily grind numbs most people to the minuscule changes that shape the places we live.

Collectively, this set of photographs is a snapshot of a city in flux, a document of the space north of the 101 freeway from 2014-2026.