Do yourself a favor and dig into some Charles Brittin this weekend. His seminal work
West and South is truly something to behold. Admittedly, I'm not a fan of reading the long-winded beatniks. The photography of this era, however, is always welcome on my coffee table. And nobody captured this time of creative upheaval quite like Brittin, who ruthlessly snapped portraits that stung the heart of 1950s Venice Beach, the beats, anitwar movements and general American boredom. And you know when guys like Dean Stockwell, Walter Hopps and David Meltzer are making regular appearances at your beach shack, you're probably doing something pretty awesome. Put on some Getz or Davis and let all the cool wash over.
