Young and in love: an intimate look at Los Angeles - in pictures

The Guardian

September 3, 2025

by Mee-Lai Stone

Young and in love: an intimate look at Los Angeles - in pictures

Paul Jasmin, who died in May, helped define the visual language of LA and its youthful dreamers – as these sensual, glowing portraits prove

Paul Jasmin’s images of real and imagined dreamers evoke a sensual and glamorous ideal while firmly rooted in reality. Fade to West is a joint exhibition with Todd Weaver, developed in collaboration with Paul Jasmin prior to his death in May at the age of 90. It celebrates his artistry and his enduring love for the city of Los Angeles. Fade to West: Paul Jasmin and Todd Weaver is at Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles, until 13 September. All photographs: Paul Jasmin/the estate of Paul Jasmin/courtesy of Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles.

Both Jasmin and Weaver render California not as an ideal or illusion, but as a living, breathing place – one that glows brightest in moments that never last.

Jasmin helped define the visual language of Los Angeles, staging moments of youth and intimacy against the soft glow of the city’s ambient warmth.

Jasmin had a long career as a fashion and art photographer. He was born in Helena, Montana, and in 1954 left to begin a journey that would take him to Paris, Morocco, New York and, eventually, ‘the city of dreams’. He turned to photography in the 1970s, encouraged by his friend Bruce Weber. His work distills a precise and evocative vision of beauty.

Jasmin’s photographs are imbued with compassion and quiet curiosity.

They reveal a version of the city that feels personal, suspended and tenderly observed.

Drawn to themes of youth, innocence and sexuality, Jasmin created dreamlike tableaux that transport viewers into a world of seductive beauty and languid allure.

Set largely in and around Los Angeles, his images explore the tension between aspiration and reality, reflecting a lifelong fascination with glamour, the American dream and fleeting moments of becoming.

Jasmin’s evocative portraits and cinematic vignettes offer a portrait of a place defined by light, youth and transience.

Though neither Jasmin nor Weaver were born in California, both were drawn to a city as radiant and restless as them. Jasmin embodied its essence – capturing not only its landscapes and people, but its elusive atmosphere.