Blind girl--Times Square, New York City no number 1953

This filmstrip by Robert Frank is a series of black and white photographs on a dark ground. Frank, known for his grainy, snapshot-like aesthetic, wasn’t afraid to get raw. These frames, like fleeting thoughts, give you glimpses into lives and places, hinting at stories without spelling them out. The graininess of the film, the stark contrasts, it's all part of the feel, like a half-remembered dream. Look at the fourth row, with the face emerging from the dark, it's like a punch in the gut, right? That high contrast, that sense of being there, in the thick of it, is Frank's signature. It's a quick, gestural way of capturing a moment. Frank’s work, especially "The Americans", shook things up, and you can see echoes of his influence in the work of photographers like Nan Goldin, who also didn't shy away from the grit and emotion of real life. Art isn't about answers, it's about the questions.