Guggenheim 689--Political rally, Butte, Montana 1956

This is Robert Frank's contact sheet titled "Guggenheim 689--Political rally, Butte, Montana," and it gives us a fly-on-the-wall perspective of Frank’s photographic process. Here, the materiality is evident: we see the perforations of the film, the varying exposures, the dust and scratches. Look at the strip in the middle. It’s like a series of quick sketches, each frame a slightly different angle on the same subject. The dark tones create a sense of intimacy, inviting us into the hushed atmosphere of the political rally. A single frame is never enough. Frank's work always reminds me of Walker Evans, but with a raw, less composed edge. It's like they both saw the same America, but Frank wasn't afraid to show the seams, the mess, the beautiful imperfection of it all. Ultimately, art is about seeing, and Frank’s contact sheets invite us to see not just the world, but the very act of looking.