John Baeder

John BAEDER loves tacos. More specifically, fish tacos from the L.A. restaurant Chabelita. "They're the best in town," he says, sitting in the early-morning sun outside the Western Avenue establishment with a satisfied smile. "And just look at that truck." Baeder pauses and looks over at one of Chabelita's mobile taco trucks parked outside. Its sides are decorated with a colorful mural featuring a young mermaid offering up a plate of ceviche.

John BAEDER loves tacos. More specifically, fish tacos from the L.A. restaurant Chabelita. "They're the best in town," he says, sitting in the early-morning sun outside the Western Avenue establishment with a satisfied smile. "And just look at that truck." Baeder pauses and looks over at one of Chabelita's mobile taco trucks parked outside. Its sides are decorated with a colorful mural featuring a young mermaid offering up a plate of ceviche.

Photorealist painter John Baeder made his name in the 1970s with numinous renderings of diners and other resonant American places. The photorealist technique of basing meticulously detailed paintings on photographs went out of fashion somewhat during the installation and video art era in the '80s and '90s. But these days painting is back, photography has fine-art status, and Baeder is still haunting roadside America. Here, some images from "L.A.

Once a year, people who love traditional art--particularly when it has a regional flavor--can make their way to the Los Angeles Art Show. They buy a ticket and enter an environment that offers something a little different from what the name suggests. The "show" is an exhibition of sorts, but it's mostly a marketplace where dealers set up booths to display and sell their wares. It's the mall concept--one-stop shopping--applied to painting, prints and photography.