Flower vendor in rain, Paris 1951

Robert Frank made this photograph of a flower vendor in the rain in Paris sometime in the mid-20th century. It's the kind of image that pulls you right into the scene, a little grey and gritty, like you can almost feel the dampness in the air. What I love is how Frank uses light and shadow, not to create something pretty, but to capture a mood, a feeling. Look at how the reflections bounce off the wet pavement, blurring the lines between what’s solid and what’s not. The contrast between the dark figures and the bright glow of the shop windows pulls you in, right? There's this one spot, just above the flower stall, where the light catches the edge of the awning. It’s not much, but it creates a focal point, a sense of depth. I think of Walker Evans, who used photography to document the everyday, but there’s also something here that reminds me of film noir. Like a still from a movie where you’re not quite sure what’s going on, but you know it’s going to be interesting. It reminds us that art thrives in the questions it raises, not the answers it provides.