Destroyed building, Milan 1945

Editor: This is Robert Frank's "Destroyed building, Milan," taken in 1945. The monochrome gelatin-silver print shows a fractured building against a washed-out sky. The perspective is disorienting, looking almost straight up. It evokes such a sense of loss, the rawness of it. What can you tell me about this piece? Curator: For me, this photograph speaks volumes about the labour and materials that constitute not just this destroyed building, but also the image itself. Look at the rough texture of the concrete, now exposed and vulnerable. What was the human cost of both its construction and its destruction? Consider the process, the silver halide crystals reacting to light, the alchemists' dream now capturing urban ruin. Editor: The "alchemists' dream" part is interesting. Are you suggesting photography itself, as a medium, comments on this devastation? Curator: Precisely. The act of making this print—the physical manipulation in the darkroom—mirrors the reconstruction efforts that would follow. Someone had to develop that print, use certain toners... it emphasizes a renewed labor in times of crisis. Frank isn’t simply showing us destruction, he's showing us evidence, forensic accounting using light and chemistry. Where do we situate it, then, between documentation, high art, and evidence? Editor: I see what you mean. It’s not just the finished photograph, but also the entire process that matters. So the artistry isn’t only in the framing, but also the choices made in creating the print as a material object. Curator: Indeed. And the consumption of the image itself - what narratives does it perpetuate? Whose stories get amplified, and whose are lost in the rubble? Think about the power dynamics inherent in documenting such a scene and how they impact meaning. Editor: That adds a whole new layer. I thought it was simply a document of war's aftermath, but now I see the layers of production and power tied into the very materiality of the image. Curator: Exactly, it shows us the potential of Materialist perspectives. I, too, will need to look at photography through a different lens.