Family--Wellfleet 3 Possibly 1962

Editor: This is Robert Frank's "Family--Wellfleet 3," possibly from 1962. It’s a contact print, a gelatin-silver print – so, photography. I find the presentation really interesting. Seeing the film strip with the images laid out changes how I engage with the individual shots. How does this format affect our understanding of Frank's work, beyond just the single images? Curator: That’s a great starting point. Seeing the work in its filmic state shifts our attention to the photographic process itself. We tend to forget the cultural and social forces intertwined in photojournalism – a sense of spontaneous reality – as if there is no process at play. And by choosing to show the contact sheet, the artist is revealing a selection process, decisions on what's shown and how that reflects a social narrative. How do you think that knowledge changes your viewing experience? Editor: It feels much more constructed, less purely documentary. Like he's inviting us to think about the choices involved in creating the image, not just observing the image itself. Are we supposed to question his intentions in that selection process? Curator: Precisely! The contact sheet transforms the singular "decisive moment," favored by many photographers, into a string of potential narratives. He’s commenting on how photography shapes, perhaps even manipulates, our understanding of reality. What's included, what’s excluded, and even the order in which we see things carries significant weight in constructing social meaning. So, is Frank trying to be transparent about this, or further obscure his intention with the appearance of transparency? Editor: I think he's doing both at the same time! It is so open, almost diaristic in its layout, yet now I am hyper aware of Frank's decisions as well as my own presumptions as the viewer. This changes everything. Curator: Absolutely. And perhaps, that's Frank's ultimate point. To show us that these forces are always at play, regardless.