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John Vincent Saulan

California State University Northridge Professor Florian
English 114B
4 May 2014
Project Space: Southern California Beaches
For our Project Space assignment, we chose to compare and contrast three different
distinct beaches in Southern California. The Californian coast stretches for hundreds of miles,
while having each beach district its own unique culture, demographics and socioeconomic status.
We particularly chose the beaches of Venice, Santa Monica, and Manhattan for our spaces.
Although all three districts are within a close proximity of each other, each one symbolizes a
specific identity that is defined by their own local communities.
The culture of Venice Beach is quite dissimilar from any beach in California or the whole
West Coast for that matter since it is a cross-cultural space. Venice Beach represents the
diversity of California, from the different social classes, ethnicities, and various subgroups that
go there. The boardwalk is littered with various street performers from acrobatic dancers to
reggae drummers. An on-going hippie culture is still quite present in Venice and its environment
is well-defined by it. It filled with colorful and festive people from aspiring street musicians,
skateboarders, graffiti artists, and as well street preachers and protesters.
Venice is also famous for its numerous medical marijuana dispensaries that quite sustains
the boardwalks economy. The beach mostly attracts young adults because of its artistic and
individualistic liberal culture, and it would not necessarily be considered as an ideal family
getaway mostly because of its marijuana scene. This space attracts a substantial amount of
homeless people or bums that reside in the boardwalk. I watched a documentary on Venice
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Beach by Cine Storm Films on YouTube, and it cites that its homeless population is fed weekly
by the local community such as volunteer groups and charity foundations. It can be concluded
that the homeless has been integrated in the culture of Venice as it has grown into a communal
space.
In comparison, the beach of Santa Monica resembles some of the qualities and
characteristics of Venice. Santa Monica, much like Venice, has a very diverse demographic and
can also be considered as a cross-cultural space. It attracts street musicians, acrobats, urban
dancers, skateboarders, and knickknack vendors. Both spaces are less than a mile of each other
as the two give the same warm temperature, literally and figuratively. Both are located in the
mid-Southern Californian coast which gives off a hotter climate than of Manhattan Beach. Also,
the liberal culture of Santa Monica and as well as Venice, gives the impression that both are
welcoming spaces for mostly anyone.
In contrast, Santa Monica beach contains features that are only unique to that space. It is
widely known for its iconic pier that holds a carnival, complete with games, roller coasters, and a
Ferris wheel. The beach literally becomes alive from the festive lights on its pier which attracts
numerous people, especially during summer nights. Also unlike Venice Beach, the boardwalk in
Santa Monica is kept tidy where graffiti and homeless people are a rare sight. It is also
surrounded by a higher class of restaurants and hotels. Even with its liberal nature, this space still
identifies itself as a classier setting that represents the whole city of Santa Monica, where more
middle to upper class residents reside.
Santa Monica beach is certainly a public space where it offers activities for a wide range
of people. Its famous carnival pier is perfect for younger visitors, making the beach an ideal
escape for families. Santa Monica also has a large group of actively fit and healthy beachgoers
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that probably symbolizes the cleanliness of the beach and the boardwalk. There are numerous
workout areas spread across the beach, specifically labeled as The Original Location of Muscle
Beach that contains pull-up bars, gymnastic swing sets, rope climbing, and an 8.5 mile bike
path that connects to Venice Beach. The diversity of activities in Santa Monica is surely a
persuasive aspect that has made it a popular leisure space for Californians and tourists alike.
Manhattan Beach on the other hand separates itself from the other two as this space
symbolizes and represents a more conservative, upper-middle class community. This beach is
famous for its wide array of expensive, artistic modern and Mediterranean vacation homes.
These houses are spread along the boardwalk with lush vegetation from palm trees, flowerbeds,
and wild beach grass that makes it an organic space. Tourists and beachgoers are persuaded to
visit Manhattan Beach since it is surrounded by hills that gives a beautiful view of the coast from
the hilltop, which is a unique feature of this space.
Although Manhattan Beach has an upscale community out of the three beaches, it is still
a public space since there are no restrictions on who could visit. The beach and its boardwalk
though has a more laidback culture than the lively and festive nature of Venice or Santa Monica.
Most of its visitors would take leisure walks along the boardwalk, some with their pets, either
sightseeing the Pacific Ocean or the intricate beach houses. Much like Santa Monica, its
environment is kept clean to represent the upper class culture, but it does not have any street
performers or musicians and only contains a handful of boardwalk vendors.
This Project Space was absolutely interesting as we explored the differences between the
beaches of Venice, Santa Monica, and Manhattan. They explicated space in distinct ways that
symbolized their own local communities. It is truly fascinating and mind-blowing that all three
are in Southern California but each has its own unique identity and vibrant feel.
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Works Cited
Cine Storm Films. "A Documentary on Venice Beach, California (2012)."YouTube. YouTube,
06 June 2012. Web. 02 May 2014.