In the Alley, 2002–2003
Color photographs
6.5 by 17 inches; 17 by 49.5 inches
Stephen Hilger’s panoramic color photographs of serviceways behind private residences in the affluent suburb of Beverly Hills, California depict an anomalous view, exposing the physical and symbolic characteristics of the backsides of these homes. Eva Díaz writes in Mind the Gap that Hilger’s emphasis suggests that “Beverly Hills is actually two cities, a ‘front’ city of impeccably maintained homes and a ‘back’ city that covertly services the front illusion. Hilger photographed their graffiti, security signage, crammed garbage cans, unaesthetic car parks and overgrown vegetation; the maintenance staff who work nearby; and the alleys’ most indelible feature, narrow, high walls that denote a claustrophobic refusal of inspection.” In an essay in Hilger’s book In the Alley, Matthew Specktor writes, “the alleys are where our lives and their byproducts–our losses, our vulnerabilities, our waste, our defenses, and our secrets–collide, where we are perhaps more honestly depicted than we are with our robust and well-manicured façades. The maps and atlases don’t show them. Only the photographer does...”
In the Alley, a leporello-bound book featuring 22 of Hilger’s color panoramas is available now from Purple Martin Press. The book, designed by Julie Fry and edited by Peter Kayafas, features an essay by Matthew Specktor and a conversation between James Welling and Hilger. Order the book at Artbook / D.A.P or find it at your favorite bookstore.