In love with L.A.’s trees

My favorite trees in Los Angeles are the ones growing in the wrong places. I especially admire those trees that can be seen struggling to break through the concrete sidewalks of South L.A., skid row, East L.A. and Pacoima. I see them rising up, bright and green in narrow spaces sandwiched between cinder-block walls, metal siding and cyclone fences. I find them imprisoned within iron enclosures designed to protect their trunks against vandals, thieves and reckless drivers.

Some of Los Angeles’ trees manage to grow, only to be brutally pruned. Some try hard to be useful. On Louvre Street in Pacoima, a small neighborhood tree displays clothes for sale, as if the used garments were its own fruit. A neighbor calls it an “arbol de ropa.” On San Julian Street in skid row, a palm tree provides shade for a homeless woman and her display of American flags. A dead tree on South Avalon Boulevard hosts sparrow nests and offers a place to wandering pigeons to perch.

I find these tough, tortured and ordinary trees moving and beautiful.

Camilo José Vergara is a photographer and 2002 MacArthur Foundation fellow. E-mail: cv90@columbia.edu. Website: Website: https://invinciblecities.camden.rutgers.edu/intro.html