Golf lesson, Ventura Boulevard--Los Angeles 1956

Editor: This is Robert Frank's "Golf lesson, Ventura Boulevard—Los Angeles," a gelatin silver print from 1956. I'm struck by the everyday scene and how Frank captures this sort of raw simplicity. What do you make of it? Curator: It’s intriguing when we consider it through the lens of labor. The materiality here is significant: the boy’s patterned shirt, perhaps mass-produced; the manufactured golf club; the platform and the well-worn grass. This wasn’t about high society; it was a business, a service being provided. Who are the people involved in this production of leisure? Editor: So, you see the golf lesson itself as a form of labor? A commodity? Curator: Precisely. Consider the production of the image itself. Frank's equipment, his film, his darkroom, the print; the very materiality of photography facilitated capturing this specific social interaction. It raises questions about the democratization of leisure and access, right? What sort of societal structures would create and necessitate this kind of business interaction? What socio-economic bracket has to want to spend leisure time and money on getting their children into a leisure practice, like gold? Editor: That’s a fascinating point. The location in Los Angeles probably adds another layer to the narrative about striving and social mobility, doesn't it? Curator: Absolutely. The materials speak of both aspiration and a certain kind of accessibility. It pushes us to see beyond just the snapshot and to consider the socio-economic factors at play. What happens after he gets the lesson? What if the kid can’t learn? Are the aspirations going to be met by the materials he interacts with? Editor: I never thought about it that way! Thinking about the materials really reframes the entire scene and the potential social commentary. Curator: Exactly! It shifts our focus to production and consumption in the post-war American landscape. The kid's clothing, the very presence of him getting a lesson on this golf course as commodities.