Glass-Simons memorial sculpture at Angels Point. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot.
In a city so massive, one would think that peaceful time alone would be hard to find. Yet Los Angeles manages to be filled with quiet moments where, standing in solitude with only chirping birds and the California sunshine to keep you company, you could swear that there weren’t 3.8 million other people surrounding you. I’ve had a couple of these moments at Angels Point in Elysian Park.
Elysian Park is the second-largest park in Los Angeles, spanning 600 acres. The Los Angeles Police Academy is tucked inside of the park, as is Dodger Stadium. Millions of people have seen Elysian Park on TV without ever having heard of the park itself.
Dodger Stadium and downtown LA as seen from Angels Point. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot
Elysian Park is nearly 100 years older than Dodger Stadium, though, the former having opened in 1886. In fact, back in 1781, what is now Elysian Park was part of the original land grant to the pueblo of Los Angeles from King Carlos III of Spain, so truly it is one of the oldest parts of Los Angeles. Though Elysian Park found early fame for a botanical garden and the shooting events of the 1932 Olympics (sad how the term “shooting event” means something different now), over time the land was used less for leisure and more for convenience. The 110 freeway bisected the park in the 1930s, the stadium opened in 1962, and by the mid-1960s there were plans to build the Los Angeles Convention Center at the intersection of Scott Avenue and Stadium Way.
But a woman named Grace E. Simons wouldn’t stand for it. She organized a group of neighborhood residents and other Angelenos to create the Citizens Committee to Save Elysian Park (CCSEP), an organization that exists to this day. Records at the University of Southern California state
“The CCSEP felt that Elysian Park was essentially Los Angeles's Central Park or Golden Gate Park, but had historically not been given the same status or protection as its more famous parks. It was their opinion that the greatest danger to park survival was combined public indifference and special interest pressures to take park land for non-park purposes.”
The CCSEP won – as we know, the Convention Center is at Pico and Figueroa – and won additional battles over the years. Some of the proposed Elysian Park projects they have blocked include oil derricks, condominiums, and an airport. They’ve made headlines recently due to their failed attempt to stop Elysian Park Avenue from being renamed Vin Scully Way – but at least swapping out that street sign won’t damage the natural landscape of the park.
Glass-Simons memorial sculpture at Angels Point. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot.
Modern Hiker outlines a fun hike to Angels Point that includes gorgeous views of Northeast Los Angeles; if you’re not so much into hiking you can drive to Angels point by following Angels Point Road southwest (up the hill) from Stadium Way.
The sculpture, a memorial to Grace E. Simons and her husband Frank Glass, was created by Peter Shire, an Echo Park native. In the 1980s, Shire was part of the Milan-based Memphis Group, described by KCET as a collective that “produced objects, buildings, fashions, and furniture that epitomized the Postmodern style for culture at large,” and had a penchant for “bold stripes, squiggly lines, and… asymmetrical shapes [that] influenced everything from… early MTV graphics to Beetlejuice’s off kilter sets.”
Sunset at Angels Point. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot
Once you have that image of the Beetlejuice house in your head, you can definitely see the resemblance to the Glass-Simons memorial sculpture. What’s especially interesting about it is how the structure mirrors and frames the downtown Los Angeles skyline. It even envelops a palm tree, perhaps a representation of how Elysian Park has remained firmly intact in the middle of a thriving metropolis. As you examine the sculpture closer, you can see other elements of the city represented there, from freeways to oil wells. It was Shire’s intention to juxtapose the commanding angles of Los Angeles infrastructure with the city’s reputation for “sun, fun, and glamour,” as he explained in a 1993 Los Angeles Times interview. “Hopefully, there’s a moment where [viewers will see] a contrast,” Shire remarked. “It’s what we see every day, but we block out. It’s reminding us to look.”
The feeling of being reminded to look is strong at Angels Point – perhaps the reason why I’ve experienced those cherished moments of peace there. The best time to visit is at sunset, when you can enjoy the city’s greatest vantage point of both the downtown skyscrapers and the San Gabriel Mountains bathed in colorful light. A short way down the hill from Angels Point is a quaint park with a grassy lawn, brightly-painted concrete picnic tables, and a fantastic view of Dodger Stadium. It’s one of the best ways to sample simultaneously all that Los Angeles has to offer: history, nature, industry, and Vin Scully.
Looking for more outdoor art in Los Angeles? Visit the Great Wall of Los Angeles, the Watts Towers and the Berlin Wall.