Snow--New York City 3 1960

Curator: The work before us is “Snow--New York City 3,” a gelatin-silver print by Robert Frank, taken in 1960. It presents itself as a full roll of 35mm film. It appears untouched and untrimmed, showing us every exposure and its adjacent frames. Editor: Immediately, it gives me a sense of fragmentation. The repetitive grid structure creates a staccato rhythm that disrupts any illusion of a cohesive narrative. The black and white tonality reinforces this, heightening the contrast and isolating each individual moment. Curator: That’s a poignant observation. The contact sheet form presents, rather than conceals, the working process. In those fleeting moments, do you notice any recurring cultural symbols or archetypes in his images? Editor: Several faces with hats reoccur and some are looking up and across at different angles which give an interesting semiotic dimension to the piece. I think the arrangement becomes a narrative or a study, where the familiar or a certain type of hat-wearer, is given many subtle viewpoints. The hats also contrast with the buildings behind. They serve as almost a bridge or continuation of their forms in different textures, suggesting, for me, their relationship to that constructed environment. Curator: Very astute. These figures echo established archetypes of the era: urban dwellers navigating a cityscape, their hats symbolizing their status and roles within the structured hierarchy of urban life. These images are a visual manifestation of New York City, showing its visual and social environment at the time. The child on the snow brings in an element of innocence amid the urban hustle. Editor: Do you think his decision to include distorted or failed shots contributes to his project? The image play of positive and negative space—highlights and shadows—also generates a pulsating energy, but also breaks any complete narrative thread and reinforces our idea of the fragment. Curator: Absolutely, his aesthetic aims to show the unfiltered reality, not always neat. Robert Frank documented American life with brutal honesty, questioning societal norms. This visual technique embodies uncertainty. Editor: Perhaps the "Snow" series challenges the very notion of photographic truth by including the process to create that image—an acceptance of errors as part of understanding a fuller version of truth. Curator: Absolutely, thank you. We invite you to examine those visual moments for your personal meanings of symbolism and interpretation of that era in that famous American city.