The Palm, On Piru is now on display at Somerset House as part of the Sony World Photography Awards.
A selection of the images form the project are on view in London until May 4th.
More info on the book soon. Join the mailing list via the link in bio. 🌹
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#aerochrome #sonyworldphotographyawards #westcoast #gfunk #kodakfilm @rosecrans.ruger@kodakprofessional@worldphotoorg@sony.unitedkingdom@somersethouse
Final day of the Sony exhibition at Somerset House.
Thank you to everyone who came through.
The Palm, On Piru will be released as a first edition hardback. Pre-orders opening soon.
B.
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#sonyworldphotographyawards #aerochrome #westcoast #losangeles #gfunk
Happy to share that a selection of my images from The Palm, On Piru have been selected as finalists for this years Sony Word Photography Awards in the Professional, Creative category. Select works from my upcoming book will be on display at Somerset House, London from 17 April - 4 May, alongside other chosen artists.
Grateful to Sony, the World Photography Organisation & the judging committee for the opportunity to share a body of work which means a lot to me, in such a historic space.
Image 1: HopOut, 2025
Image 2: Stanford & Tay Ave, 2025
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Shot throughout 2025, The Palm, On Piru is a photographic volume documenting G-Funk and Gangster Rap artists across Piru and Blood-affiliated neighborhoods in South Central Los Angeles, Compton, Carson, and Inglewood, offering a visual study of the communities foundational to West Coast Hip Hop and Southern California’s parallel gang culture. Tracing a lineage from the rise of the Crips and the Piru Street Boys to the formation of the Bloods - and the emergence of Gangster Rap - the book situates contemporary voices within a broader cultural history that continues to shape global rap music.
Photographed on Kodak Aerochrome infrared film, originally developed for military surveillance during the Vietnam War era, the work renders the red and pink spectrum as both aesthetic and symbolic language, illuminating themes of collective identity, spirituality, place, and the enduring legacy of the “Red” side of West Coast Hip Hop / Rap.
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#sonyworldphotographyawards #aerochrome #westcoast #bompton #gfunk @kodakprofessional@worldphotoorg@sony.unitedkingdom@sony
Rosecrans Av.
The dog that lived just down from Jenell’s that barked at me everyday.
My brother, Hopout & the Nellaz.
Shot on #kodak #kodakektar100 #nikonfe2 #35mmfilm #compton
The making of The Palm, On Piru.
Behind the scenes images of the people & places that made the project possible. Long live the homies.
Selected images from the project will be on display at Somerset House from 17th April - 4th May as part of the Sony World Photography Awards.
Join the mailing list via the link in my bio for book updates.
B
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#gfunk #aerochrome #westcoast #sonyworldphotographyawards #kodak @sony@worldphotoorg@somersethouse@kodakprofessional_europe@kodak_shootfilm
The Palm, On Piru - A book by Ben Brooks
Proud (!) to announce I have my debut photo book coming out this year. I filmed this trailer in-between shoots, out with the homies in LA. Watch until the end, B.
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Shot throughout 2025, The Palm, On Piru is a photographic volume documenting G-Funk and Gangster Rap artists across Piru and Blood-affiliated neighbourhoods in South Central Los Angeles, Compton, Carson, and Inglewood, offering a visual study of the communities foundational to West Coast Hip Hop and Southern California’s parallel gang culture. Tracing a lineage from the rise of the Crips and the Piru Street Boys to the formation of the Bloods - and the emergence of Gangster Rap - the book situates contemporary voices within a broader cultural history that continues to shape global rap music.
Photographed on Kodak Aerochrome infrared film, originally developed for military surveillance during the Vietnam War era, the work renders the red and pink spectrum as both aesthetic and symbolic language, illuminating themes of collective identity, spirituality, place, and the enduring legacy of the “Red” side of West Coast Hip Hop / Rap.
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#gfunk #kodak #piru #aerochrome #westcoast @rosecranshopout@offtheblock.ek@top5ive_____@rxckstarhavxck@santeezy818@rosecrans.ruger@keep_juugen@french450_@latopcats.cc
