Paris 4 1959

This is Robert Frank's "Paris 4," a gelatin silver print, and what strikes me first is how he's laid bare his process. It's like we're seeing his raw thought, his selection, all the frames, not just the chosen one. The whole strip of film becomes the artwork. I love this! It's like, here's the world, unedited, unfiltered, maybe a bit out of focus! The blacks are rich, and the whites have this glow, a silveriness that's pure photography. It is, in a way, like a painter laying down marks, building up a composition. Look at the row with the three motorbikes. They become a motif, a rhythm. This reminds me a bit of Gerhard Richter's photo paintings, the way he blurs the line between photography and painting. Ultimately, Frank’s work isn’t about perfect clarity; it’s about feeling, about catching a fleeting moment. It's about life, raw and unpolished.