LA confidential: photographer Masha Demianova takes on Los Angeles

In her recent travels to Los Angeles, Moscow-based photographer Masha Demianova found an unexpected coldness in the sunlit streets. Following her journey through the city’s deserted streets, we see an intriguing mix of religious iconography against a backdrop of towering palm trees. Russian Jewish cemeteries are only streets away from shops filled with symbols of Christianity and the Mexican occult. “Los Angeles is the city of dogs and celebrities,” says Demianova, who has taken photographs for a range of well-known publications such as Harper’s Bazaar and Port. “People are packed away in cars, cafes and beauty salons so there’s no one on the streets. It’s comfortable here but also like a desert, which is alienating.”