Art Deco Los Angeles Comes Into Focus in New Photography Book

Art Deco Los Angeles Comes Into Focus in New Photography Book originally appeared on L.A. Mag.

In the handsome new book Art Deco Los Angeles, photographer Robert Landau shows off L.A.’s glamorous architecture of the 1920s and 30s. Viewing these treasures today alongside the grit and grime of the contemporary city, these glorious survivors stand out like precious jewels. Seeing them collected all together in one place makes L.A. look like the Emerald City of Oz.

In our spread out city lots of things clamor for our attention, or maybe it’s just the glazed eyes we get in traffic, but these buildings can recede into the background of everyday life. By framing these beauties in a foot-tall art book, the roadside glitz we are privileged to enjoy in Southern California is elevated to art.

Earlier this year, the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles hosted a pop-up exhibition celebrating the centennial of the style. The outrageous pavilions of the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris are where the term “Art Deco” comes from. That long-ago design fair is generally thought of as origin of the distinctive aesthetic that gave the world a whole new way to think about what was modern. Every aspect of daily life, from toasters to automobiles got a new look. Meanwhile, back in Los Angeles, architects like Lloyd Wright had been pursuing new modernistic styles for years.

“Los Angeles,” architect Alan Hess writes in his opening essay, “is arguably the most modern city in the world.” We are filled to the brim with Art Deco landmarks. Our vast collection includes public treasures like Griffith Observatory, the Hollywood Bowl and Los Angeles City Hall. We have magnificent deco skyscrapers like the Eastern Columbia Building on Broadway (converted to lofts in 2006) and the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood.

During the dark years of the 1980s and 90s, that that tower (as well as the Wiltern theater and Bullocks Wilshire) was viewed as a hulking white elephant wheezing its last breath. A new generation of architects and developers discovered these special places and brought them back to life. Landmarks like the Pan Pacific Auditorium and Richfield building were not so lucky.

The way Landau pushes in to the tiniest artistic details in bas relief, tile and stone then pulls back to reveal the jazziest compositions of the Jazz Age in their entirety turns the city streets into a glittering revue.

Photographer Robert Landau and essayist Alan Hess will be hosting a walk-through discussion and closing event at a photo exhibition for the book on August 16 from 3-5pm.

Denenberg Gallery
417 N. San Vicente Blvd. 
West Hollywood 
RSVP to: gallery@denenbergfinearts.com

This story was originally reported by L.A. Mag on Aug 6, 2025, where it first appeared.