Hearn's--New York City no number 1955

This is Robert Frank's contact sheet, Hearn's--New York City no number, with all those silver gelatin prints, like notes from another world. I’m always drawn to work that shows process, and here, the grid of images feels like a storyboard of Frank's mind as he moved through the city. Look at how he crops in on the people, then pulls back to show the broader scene. Each frame is a little experiment. I love this sense of searching for the right shot. In the upper left, there's a tightly framed shot of a woman with a dark jacket. The contrast is stark, almost bruised. Frank has this knack for capturing these off-kilter moments that feel both intimate and alienating. It reminds me of Garry Winogrand’s street photography—that same hunger to capture the fleeting moments of everyday life, only Frank is somehow sadder, more melancholic. He’s a master of the minor key. It reminds you that art’s an ongoing conversation. A way of seeing and feeling, passed down and transformed.