Parade c. 1945

Editor: This is "Parade," a black and white photograph by Robert Frank, taken around 1945. The image shows a marching band and crowd carrying flags in front of a building. I immediately notice the visual weight of the flags dominating the composition. What can you tell me about the imagery here? Curator: Note the assertive diagonal thrust of the flags against the stability of the gothic architectural backdrop. It creates a palpable tension. Do you think it captures a moment of triumph, defiance, or something more complex? What emotions does this evoke in you, and how might these feelings tie into post-war anxieties and shifting social identities? Editor: I feel a sense of determined optimism, though maybe laced with some unease given the density of the crowd and the imposing architecture in the background. Curator: Indeed, Frank may be speaking to the psychology of crowds and how individual identity dissolves into collective purpose. The architecture almost looms as an indifferent witness to it all, connecting modern anxieties to a longer history. What symbolic meaning might a ‘parade’ hold, given its social and ritualistic associations? Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't considered the symbolic weight of a parade beyond just celebration. Now I am wondering what social commentaries might be woven into Frank's depiction of the crowd. Curator: Look closer at the banner texts within the frame. The repeated emblems of ‘Proletariat’ suggests socialist overtones in post-war Europe, capturing how potent and charged those symbols and movements could be in reconstructing societal structures and norms. Editor: So the parade, as a recurring image in society, gains layers of meaning related to the collective identities present in the flags. Thank you, this makes the picture feel less like a fleeting moment and more of an emblem of cultural change. Curator: Exactly. Photographic images become cultural objects. Examining symbols helps reveal layers of cultural memory.