Experience LA's Top Instagram Spot

A lot of people talk about the top Instagram spots in Los Angeles. We’re going to let you experience what it’s like to be at THE top Instagram spot in LA.

As you’ll see in the video, crowds armed with cameras and smart phone cameras form around the Urban Light sculpture at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art every night at dusk. There are more photos being taken here on any given evening than anywhere else in the city. This Instagram spot is so hot that it even draws A-list celebrities to pose among the 202 street lamps in the artwork.

The public art sculpture was created by LA artist Chris Burden in 2008. The New York Times said it became an “instant landmark.” Perhaps they should have said it became an “Instagram Landmark,” although Instagram didn’t come into the picture until two years later.

Actually the first “selfie” taken at Urban Light predates Instagram! The first selfie at Urban Light was taken by Diana Felszeghy who posted her picture on Flickr. Sorry Instagram, you can’t win them all!

But Instagram has more than made up for not being first. In February 2018 the number of photos on Instagram tagged #urbanlight or #urbanlights topped 121,000 images. (Note: the correct hashtag is #UrbanLight, the name is singular even though there any many lampposts in the sculpture.) According to Public Art in Public Places, Urban Light has become the most visited, photographed and well-known public artwork in Southern California.

While everyone might be “doing it for the gram” as the United Airlines ad says, it’s actually Chris Burden’s artwork that’s bringing so many people together in such a remarkable way! We created the above video so you could see just how cool the experience is and why taking some Instagram photos at Urban Light has to be part of your LA vacation! It’s a must for your Instagram travels page and who knows, you might even bump into some celebrities posing among the lights too.

We did. We ran right into Derek Hough and Haley Erbert from Dancing With The Stars taping themselves doing a dance routine among the lampposts with a GoPro Hero camera. (see them in the video above).

The best time to take pictures at Urban Light is just as the sun goes down. Plan to arrive about a half an hour before sunset and start shooting as the lights come on at dusk. The solar powered lights are on every night from dusk until 10:00 pm. Or better yet, make a day of it. Arrive early enough in the day to visit the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. It has some of the finest and most unique art collections in the west!

Urban Light is located in front of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art at 5905 Wilshire Blvd.

Photos after the break….

Dancing with stars — Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert from Dancing with the Stars at Urban Light

art — Closeup of the lamps at the top of the iconic Urban Light Sculpture in Los Angeles.

public art — The sun peaks through the lamp posts of the Urban Light Sculpture in Los Angeles.

celebrities — Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert from Dancing with the Stars filming at Urban Light

instagram — The Urban Light Sculpture on Wilshire Blvd has become an unofficial symbol of Los Angles.

Background Music: Stranger Danger by Francis Preve
From the YouTube music library
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHF8dGfnDzTO-8K5mYMohXA

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