THE HOLLYWOOD CENTER MOTEL - an essay by Ashley Noelle

Labeled Los Angeles keeps growing, and I think this next step is the most exciting of all. 

Malibu, California. It’s 21 miles of dreamscape, coastal living, and endless inspiration. Back when I first moved to Los Angeles in 1994, the only things I knew about Malibu were what I had seen on Baywatch or in the movie Point Break. High energy and major drama. But in real life, I found the beachside town to be super laidback and easygoing.

TOWER RECORDS by ASHLEY NOELLE Tower Records on Sunset Blvd. Just that phase alone and your mind can wander in a million directions. The first things I think of are 80s hair bands, the energy of a live show in that parking lot, and the millions of personal stories that happened in and around this location. People made plans to go here. Like real plans. Specifically, Tower Records was the epicenter of sonic anything and everything. From pop to rock to classical, and sound effe

THE HOT DOG THE NUN THE WHITE ROSE The hot dog, the nun and the white rose. It sounds like the start of a Charles Bukowski novel, but this trio is an introduction to a curious side of Los Angeles I’m sharing through Labeled Los Angeles. There are really weird things all over the city. People can be so creative and resourceful. I love spotting something and wondering…. Why? Or noticing the subtle things that make up the city and are so common people hardly see them.  The H

Flowers and Cameras. A block east of Sunset and Vine, Pete’s Flowers Shop and Morgan Camera Shop were holdouts of a Hollywood long gone. This was one of the first locations I photographed for the Los Angeles Series , in 2016. It’s easy to see why. The camera signage was super cool, and the way it seemed like someone just closed it up one day and never came back was very intriguing. You could still see in the windows and it was completely full inside. There were cameras just s

The story behind the corner of Sunset Blvd and Crescent Heights in Hollywood, California.

My Modern Mona Lisa. Anais is my forever muse. She has been my light test model since she was about 8 years old, something she’s always loved to do. Now Anais is a stand in for Oliva Rodrigo, so it was good practice. I’ve been so lucky to have a beautiful, ballerina type daughter that was always up for whatever crazy idea popped in my mind. For this photograph, I had found that table in an alley in Beverly Hills. It’s super weathered and inspired me to do something classic. I