ARTH1100 WRITING INTENSIVE History of Photography F2017

Robert Frank was an extraordinary photographer in my opinion. He depicted America in a way that is unique through his photographs. Like Peter Galassi said, “the people often look distracted or bored”, and Frank was able to capture how the Americans felt with his photographs. Frank’s theme for photography was ordinary people, religion, politics and building block of society. Frank who lives in the South was never racially profiled. However, Frank was bothered by the racial segregation that was going on at the time. In one of the photographs that Frank took, it was a black woman holding a white baby. The context behind the photograph was that Frank was confused as to why “a white southern woman would entrust their baby to the care of a black woman but wouldn’t sit next to them at the lunch counter.” This shows the compassion that Frank exhibits through his many photographs. Aside from his politic photography, Frank develops a new style of photography where he isolates two individuals that seem to tell a story through their emotions. As Galassi said, Frank was “trying to understand the whole country” and how individuals relate with the country with his photographs. I feel that’s what makes his photography interesting.

1. Robert Frank was born on November 9, 1924 is a Swiss-American photographer and documentary filmmaker. His work known as a  book titled The Americans. His photography was very important that he captured ordinary. As a photographer he want to see who the outsider see America. His work it was artistic and political at the same time because he want to capture the everyday life of the Americans. His work was incredible. After wwll and before the civil war. Segregation in America was a exist and as of photographer who were from swiss he never thought that these problems exist in The United. One of the photos that was taking by him the black babysitters lady holding a white baby girl. Who did the mother left her baby with the black lady if she are afraid from her. most of his photos is with flag of America and some with a people that were protesting. He took so much photo and only 83 that he used in his book which called the Americans. Robert Frank when he moved to America he never thought about the skin color and race. That black People should be segregated. His work was inspired for the outsiders how they really see Americans. because those photos did not only capture the ordinary life of Americans but also society as a whole.

Robert Frank’s photography book, “The Americans” was very impressive because those photos did not only capture the ordinary life of Americans but also society as a whole. In 1950’s, racism was an issue that was not blatantly shown to the public and other countries. Robert Frank may not have even expected the darkness, hopeless, and loneliness of American lives. Robert Frank’s photography’s main focus was to capture the daily life of Americans. Political problems however plagued the photos indicating the struggles that were upon the lives of the Americans. He did not manipulate the people in his photos to do or pose in certain way, which brought attention to the public of the real Americans lived back in that period.

The book, “The Americans” (1958) by Robert Frank is a great publication of 83 photographs taken of people in the 1950s. Frank’s goal was to capture America in its everyday lives. With this book Frank changed the worlds perception and art photograph. During a yearlong Fellowship Frank took photographs of people coast to coast. Photographs that were raw, and honest after WWII when there was a national pride in Americans. Frank was good at telling a tell with a visual poem. Many saw his work as bleak, containing photographs of people distracted and bored. His photographs were featured in the exhibition donated to the Cantors Art Center of Stanford. This exhibition contained more than 150 photos that were not in the book. I find Frank’s photographs artistic. He captured people during moments of their everyday lives. People just living their lives without the knowledge of knowing someone sees them or was even taking their photo. He saw them as art, different people of color, religion and cultures. Catching them at their most vulnerable state and creating visual art that has a unfinished story of someones life. He wanted to understand the whole country and explore individuals. To me that’s art, exploring something that your curious about, capturing it, and being able to tell a story that others can relate to. Frank was good at telling a story and sometimes used metaphors to better explain his work.

                         Robert Frank and “The Americans”

Robert Frank was an American Swiss photographer, who emigrated to the United States in 1947. Frank at that time had a great conception of the United States and its culture and society but that perception of America quickly changed after taking a close look. What started off as a curiosity of the Americans quickly changed to a feeling of dread. He saw America as a bleak place with an overemphasis on money and lonely people trapped in social circumstances. During his two year travel across America, Frank documented the tension between the optimism of 1950’s and the realities of class and racial differences.  He shot 28,000 photos but he only chooses 83 for his book “The Americans.” America at that time after the World War II, felt great pride, optimism, and empowerment, so when Frank’s ‘The Americans” was published, they felt exposed and their image threatened, thus Frank’s photos weren’t published in the United States until much later.  

Robert Frank’s photo book “The Americans” in my opinion was real, personal, and poetic. The images were raw and powerful showing us a side of America in the 1950’s that was dreadful. The racism in that time was evident in his photographs and that to me was a document to how the people were in those times. The images show how an optimistic America, in reality, was a bleak and lonely place, and it seemed people were miserable in their jobs and everyday lives. But I believe Franks intention wasn’t to criticize and expose the Americans but merely to observe and report, and he wanted to convey his feeling through his photographs.

The images in the book “The Americans” were honest, artistic, and despondent. Frank through these images introduced an art to photography that wasn’t there before, and there is no doubt of his enormous talent.

This is a photo of the pumpkin pie that I made for the Thanksgiving.

I think that food photography is great because we all like food. We all eat, so why wouldn’t anyone love looking at pictures of food and wanting to eat it.