Glenn Hill with his first of many Halloween decorations, made from recycled materials

As an overworked adult these days, it’s easy to forget about the Halloween holiday. Not to mention, there are fewer decorations than the days of growing up in a small town, our mini suburbs full of kids trick-or-treating and haunted houses (remember the house that gave out full-size candy bars?!). Thankfully, however, we’ve got our very own resident bringing the Halloween spirit alive to one pocket of Echo Park.

I first noticed this house a few years ago when I lived in a dark little apartment across the street, my first Echo Park pad. As the Halloween holiday approached, we watched as an enormous figure took shape in front of our neighbor’s home, its giant arms reaching out over the sidewalk and a vague grotesque expression on its face. It was completely made out of paper and tape, surprisingly surviving our street and the weather. It turns out the papier-mâché figure was one of many, and certainly not the last.

Hoping to catch a glimpse of more of these figures, we met up with the artist himself, Glenn Hill. He’s lived in his Echo Park home on Douglas Street near Beverly Boulevard for about nine years now. Five or six years ago, he started hosting Halloween parties for fellow 12-step program members at his home – and what would a Halloween party be without decorations? Read more