A vibrant but poignant look at LA life and its forgotten courtyards by TJ Tambellini

TJ Tambellini’s photography is born of a psychogeographical concern with his own neighbourhood, LA, and among the bright pinks and blues and the Hockneyish pool fascination lies a more sinister message.

His Court Yard series was recently turned into a photozine and published by London-based independent publisher, Kiosk. Designed by Kati Forner, the limited-edition volume makes the most of TJ’s rich imagery, and shows a Los Angeles stripped of its glittering connotations and presented as a mixture of the organic and inorganic, bright colours jostling for attention.

The images depict West Hollywood apartment buildings built in the 1920s and 30s. “While the variance in these properties is visually pleasing, the sameness is overpowering,” says TJ.

He continues: “While it is common practice in Los Angeles to add lore to landmarks and locations that might otherwise seem banal and load them distinction – that person lived there, this was filmed here, who died where – with this it’s not. Court Yard is not a straight documentation of these central courtyards, but rather an abstract observation of the property details and seemingly causal relationships between organic and inorganic."