Self-Portrait 1945

This is Robert Frank’s, Self-Portrait, a black and white photograph. Look at the strong contrast, almost harsh, like a sunny day. It’s got that feeling of immediate, process-driven mark making you find in photography - click, you've made your mark! I love how Frank includes himself as a shadow, holding a camera. It’s him, but not him, a stand-in. The bike, the rack, the wall - they all seem very solid, real, while the shadow is ephemeral and fleeting. He’s saying something about being present in a place, but only partially. It’s as if he is both there and not there, observer and participant, solid and shadow. Frank’s work reminds me of Helen Levitt, another street photographer. But where Levitt captured the spontaneity of children, Frank’s work is more serious and speaks to something about the nature of self-expression. Can you ever really capture yourself? Or is it always a shadow, a trace?