Spirit Myth by Todd Cole

Softcover, 32 pages10.5 inches x 14 inches26.67 x 35.56 cmSummer 2021 Todd Cole's Spirit Myth project was born out a desire to create a new mythology around his home of Hollywood, California. For a century, young dreamers have walked Hollywood Boulevard, full of unbridled ambition chasing a dream. Cole befriended one of these young dreamers, a local skateboarder named Ryan Holland. Together, they journeyed onto Hollywood Boulevard, without a plan or expectations, and found the light. The photographic moments revealed themselves. Concurrently, Todd began photographing, once a day, wild rushes of succulents and cacti at the end of his street. Juxtaposing these portraits of old growth cacti with the portraits of Ryan released a beautiful tension between the seemingly ancient landscape, contrasted against the temporality of the idealistic young dreamer. These two dichotomies merged into a singular vision, and he began to see the shimmer of a myth—a myth about transience, permanence, and dr