Caerau, Wales 1953

Robert Frank shot this image in Caerau, Wales, sometime in 1951. Look at how the grey flattens the scene, but also allows a sense of depth. It’s like Frank is trying to find the form, trying to find the image, pushing and pulling.   Frank uses the grey scale to create a tonal landscape, a range of mid-tones that almost blend the figures into the landscape. See how the textures, the coal dust and the kids clothes are all part of the same world. Even the sky looks like it’s made of the same stuff as the ground. The composition feels like a slow reveal, the eye moving hesitantly around the frame. There's a kind of bleakness, yes, but also a subtle beauty in these quiet, melancholic tones.   Frank’s photographs are almost like Walker Evans, but more intimate and personal. Both artists captured a sense of everyday life, but Frank's is rawer, like a sketchbook entry. Art isn't about answers, it's about questions, about the ongoing conversation of how we see and feel.