The Saints of Los Angeles

Travel Blog  •  Michael Yessis  •  03.12.08 | 9:59 AM ET

LA

There are 103 streets in Los Angeles named after saints, and artist J. Michael Walker has completed “an obsessive quest to locate, research and artistically interpret” all of them, from the iconic (Santa Monica Boulevard) to the private (St. Moritz Drive) to the immortalized in rock music (St. Andrews). It took Walker seven years to complete the project, which is currently on display at the Autry National Center.

Why chronicle the streets named after saints? “It makes you think about the fullness of humanity,” Walker told the New York Times, instead of “someone trying to cut you off as you turn left.”

Tags: Global Village, North America, United States, California, Los Angeles, News and Briefs


4 Comments for The Saints of Los Angeles

Ling 03.13.08 | 8:25 AM ET

Seven years is a pretty long time. Fullness of humanity and all is fine, but the guy probably just has way too much time on his hands.

K S Randall 03.15.08 | 5:51 AM ET

It explains why the city has survived for so long. I’ve always believed that names have power. A place or person will become whatever their name means. If you give your kid a name like loser or stupid, you will end up with an adult like Homer Simpson or Al Bundy.

For example:  Al Gore has problems with people believing him or respecting him because his name is too simillar to the star called Algol, aka Medusa—the snake-haired woman who was killed by the Greek hero Persesus. Algol is also known as the “demon-star” according to ancient myth because it was believed it caused calamity. In reference to Al Gore, some people think Al Gore made up or is exaggerating the “global warming” issue.

When I’ve been in Los Angeles, I’ve also noticed various streets named “Avenue of the Champions” and “Avenue of the Stars”. There is even a place called Miracle Mile!  It’s not surprising that there are so many luxurious places and so many successful people. Yes, there are poor people too, but you have to move like a champion to survive in this city. As long as I thought as a winner and kept my eyes open for opportunities, I had no problem getting jobs here.

In contrast, Seattle and it’s surrounding cities have poverty or government related names. There is a mountain called Mt. Adams. Federal Way, which is 25 miles south of Seattle, was founded during the depression and named after the US government. Historically, there have been many welfare recipiants, wandering homeless people, people living paycheck-to-paycheck. Many people in Washington State were heavily affected by the overseas outsourcing that happened at the beginning of Bush’s reign.

So in conclusion, you are what you are named.

Michael Yessis 03.17.08 | 4:02 PM ET

Perhaps names aren’t destiny, KS. Check out these two stories:

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/07/31/1027926917671.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/11/science/11tier.html?scp=2&sq=baby+names&st=nyt

KS Randall 03.20.08 | 7:17 PM ET

Names are an inheritance. Sure, destiny is never locked in because of free will. To give the name, “Loser”, to a kid is increasing his chances for failure.

It’s not superstition. It’s known to Christians as the Law of Seed-time and Harvest. Non-Christians know it as “The Secret”, the Law of Attraction. However you name it, there is a force at work in this world. Sure the names of this force (Seed-time and Harvest, Law of Attraction) are modern names. Despite that, the effects of this force are very, very real and have been in this world for a very long time.

Words have more power than the modern mind thinks. That’s why in ancient times only a select few could read and write. That’s why the Israelites were so careful in taking God’s name in vain. Even Jews today spell the God as G-d.

One last thing, your New York Times article proves my side right with this quote:

“Studies showed that children with odd names got worse grades and were less popular than other classmates in elementary school. In college they were more likely to flunk out or become “psychoneurotic.” Prospective bosses spurned their résumés. They were overrepresented among emotionally disturbed children and psychiatric patients. “

I still believe that names do have power.

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