Trees--Landscape 1941 - 1945

Curator: Immediately, a sense of quiet, a kind of contained solemnity strikes me looking at this. It's stark, perhaps, but somehow serene in its repetition. Editor: That's interesting. We are currently observing "Trees—Landscape", a gelatin-silver print by Robert Frank, believed to have been produced sometime between 1941 and 1945. Considering that time frame, might this serene quality belie a deeper, perhaps anxious engagement with the natural world during a period of immense global upheaval? Curator: Certainly. The symbol of the forest, for example, in folklore and throughout history often represents both refuge and danger, a place of hidden knowledge but also potential peril. The repetitive nature of the trees lined up almost feels like soldiers... an endless army... marching along. Given when Frank made this, one cannot avoid drawing a relationship to current events. Editor: Absolutely. And thinking about Frank’s wider body of work, the perspective of an outsider often permeates his photographs, doesn't it? Is this landscape offering a reflection on belonging and displacement that speak to broader existential anxieties tied to migration, war, identity? Are we on the outside or are we a part of this procession? Curator: Precisely. Consider the tonality as well; the way the grayscale seems to flatten the image. What is present in the dark vs the light -- there isn't very much definition, it is more tonal than textural. It reminds one that identity and our place within our larger societal landscape is defined by how we navigate various external and environmental challenges. Editor: It's interesting how the artist’s focus seems less about the specific characteristics of individual trees, and more about capturing the rhythm and the essence of this continuous forest, right? What's being concealed by it's density versus what might we read if only there was just one tree -- or several arranged in a unique grouping? Curator: The lack of a clear focal point only emphasizes this tension. And in that era—with mass displacement and the fight for belonging dominating public thought—Frank uses this forest as a tool to contemplate how a broader society embraces or expels others, based on socio-political environments. Editor: Frank, through this seemingly straightforward landscape, has created an incredibly multi-layered, visually complex narrative. It encourages to reflect not only on our historical, present and future social responsibilities. Curator: Indeed. "Trees--Landscape" urges us to find ourselves on an increasingly diverse social terrain; finding refuge and direction in a society in conflict. The way it encourages inward consideration is truly affecting.