Stephen Hilger: In the Alley

A subversive portrait of Beverly Hills in a gorgeous leporello format

This leporello publication presents Brooklyn-based photographer Stephen Hilger's (born 1975) color photographs of service alleys and the backside of houses separating the public from the private in the affluent suburb of Beverly Hills, California--a more anomalous view of the place by depicting the physical and symbolic spaces behind the homes of the area's wealthy residents. Hilger photographed their graffiti, security signage, crammed garbage cans, car parks and overgrown vegetation; the maintenance staff working nearby; and the alleys' narrow, high walls that conjure a claustrophobic refusal of inspection.
In the Alley features 22 panoramic photographs in a leporello-folded format so the reader can leaf through the photographs or expand the book-object for display. An essay by novelist Matthew Specktor maps out the significance of Hilger's alley views in the context of personal histories and Hollywood stories. In a conversation, Hilger and photographer James Welling discuss their respective practices.
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