Saint Patrick's Day parade--New York City no number 17 - 1958

Robert Frank captured this image of a Saint Patrick's Day parade in New York City with his camera, and what strikes me is how he presents the film itself as part of the artwork. Here we have strips of film, the individual frames like cells in a body, each offering a slightly different view of the parade. The grain is so present, it’s almost like a layer of abstraction, softening the details and giving everything a kind of dreamy, hazy quality. In the bottom strip, the faces are blurred, almost ghostly, but full of life. The physicality of the film, with its sprocket holes and frame edges, reminds us of the process of seeing, recording, and remembering. Frank seems to be telling us that photography isn't just about capturing reality, it’s also about how we piece together fragments of experience to create our own narratives, just like the paintings of Gerhard Richter, who also explores the relationship between photography and memory. Ultimately, this piece leaves you with more questions than answers, and that's what makes it so compelling.