Louis Faurer no number c. early 1950s

Robert Frank made this contact sheet, "Louis Faurer no number", sometime in the mid-twentieth century, probably in his darkroom. It’s a collection of moments, tiny glimpses of life, preserved in monochrome. What strikes me is the way Frank lets us see his process. Usually, artists want to hide the messy stuff, but here, the edges of the film, the sprocket holes, they’re all part of the story. Each frame is like a sketch in a notebook, some sharp and clear, others blurry, overexposed. Look at the third strip down, where there's a cluster of faces, leaning in close. The graininess, the contrast, it almost feels like you can hear the chatter and the energy of the scene. It's a bit like looking at a Cy Twombly painting, where the scribbles and erasures are just as important as the lines themselves. These images aren't perfect, and that's exactly what makes them so alive.