Guggenheim 96/Ford 19/Lines of My Hand 64--Detroit 1955

This is a contact sheet by Robert Frank, and it’s like looking at someone’s mind at work. The repetition of images, the slight shifts in perspective – it’s all about the process of seeing. The whole thing has a scratchy, grainy feel, and that really emphasizes the physical aspect of photography. The edges of the film are visible, the sprocket holes, and even a kind of hand-drawn rectangle that brings the eye back again and again. It’s like he's saying, "look at this, no, really look at this." In one of the frames you can see the workers, but they are small and almost anonymous. They are a line, an element in the industrial landscape, not unlike the mark making in a Cy Twombly painting, each mark like a breath. Frank reminds me of other photographers, like Walker Evans. Both were drawn to documenting everyday life, but Frank does it with a raw, almost feverish energy. There’s an immediacy that grabs you. It’s a reminder that art isn’t about perfection. It’s about feeling, seeing, and trying to make sense of it all.