VB contributing photographer Shane O’Donnell turns vintage Valley signs into art.

As both a photographer and a painter, Shane O’Donnell is inspired by Americana, like this sign he discovered along the Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. “A friend suggested I visit the Valley to find cool things to paint. So one Sunday I grabbed my camera and my daughter, and we drove up from the Southbay for a scout. This sign was actually the first one we spotted that day.”

Shane was attracted to its 1960s vibe “and the angles creating what I see as a dynamic shape, anchored by the light pole. I like mundane things that can ultimately be seen as art. I think that many overlooked things, if viewed in the right light and given an interesting framing, are worthy of artistic contemplation.”

Sure he could have simply shot them with his camera. But that’s just not Shane. “A simple photograph would seem flat and uninteresting; it simply could not connote the enthusiasm I feel for it. I view the sign as a pseudo-realistic impression of what it once was—glimmering, shining and welcoming.”

“Delicatessen” is a 36 x 36 acrylic on canvas. For more of Shane’s work, go to theshanegallery.com.