Living on the Westside of Los Angeles from the late 2010s into the 2020s is a bit like living near the coast of an island as the tide rapidly rises: gentrification takes hold, housing development escalates, the demographics change…and in turn, the area of the city I call home – the Westside – reaches cost levels I wouldn’t be able to afford were it not for the fact that I’ve been in a rent controlled apartment since 2005, during which time that tide has risen dramatically. From individual spec homes to the private development of overly ambitious buildings (such as the Cumulus project, whose tower is featured here) that are attempting to capitalize on the growth of L.A.’s expanded Expo line, I’m documenting this growth in progress, at various phases, as specific recordings but also as a general capture, even a anti-memorium, of perpetual development.
