Various family S19 1950

Editor: Here we have Robert Frank's "Various family S19," a gelatin silver print from 1950, presented as the artist's full contact sheet. There’s a striking density to the imagery; glimpses of street scenes hinting at… perhaps, some organized event? What are your initial thoughts when viewing it? Curator: My eye is immediately drawn to the presentation itself, the whole contact sheet. Frank isn’t giving us a polished image, but the raw, unedited perspective. What stories were present in that era? Given the post-war context, this raw approach served as a counter-narrative. What could we gather regarding societal conventions and visual representation at the time? Editor: So, the contact sheet format is deliberately challenging idealized portrayals? What impact do you think it had, presenting images in this manner? Curator: Exactly. Consider how photography, especially street photography, was perceived and consumed then. This is Frank wrestling control over the image, saying, “Here are the in-betweens, the moments most would discard. They’re equally valid.” Frank invites the viewer to actively participate in the selection and interpretation of meaning from his image sequence. Editor: It really does invite you into the artistic process, which can be more telling of the world he observed. Is it a critique of staged imagery of the period? Curator: Indeed. This very unfiltered presentation of Frank's image challenges the perfect presentation typical to fine art photography by rejecting accepted rules of the contemporary image and challenging us to examine social facades in general. It urges you to question what is being shown versus what is left out. Editor: Looking at it from this angle makes me appreciate its radical and politically critical edge even more. It highlights that everything is mediated by perception. Thanks, this has opened up new insights for me. Curator: Absolutely, and understanding those visual choices expands how we examine this moment in time. There is power in raw art.