Kite II 1957 - 1958

Editor: So, this is Robert Frank's "Kite II," a contact print made from gelatin silver prints, dated between 1957 and 1958. Looking at it, I am struck by the sequence and its documentary feel... what do you see in this piece? Curator: I see a profound exploration of American identity and the alienation within it, especially during the Cold War era. Frank, a Swiss immigrant, captures the mundane and often unsettling aspects of American life with a critical eye. The sequencing is deliberate, juxtaposing images of leisure with a sense of underlying tension. What do you make of the kite itself? Where is it? Does it actually exist, or does it signify lost freedoms and innocence during this period? Editor: I hadn't thought of the kite as symbolic! The contact sheet format gives it a raw, almost unedited quality. Do you think this rawness contributes to Frank’s critique? Curator: Absolutely. This approach disrupts the glossy image of the American Dream, exposing the grit beneath the surface. Consider how gender and class are subtly represented – who are the people in these photographs, and what narratives are hinted at? What social critiques are interwoven within the seemingly everyday scenes captured in these frames? Editor: I see what you mean. The diversity is there, but almost anonymous, caught in passing. I didn’t consider the implicit social commentary before. Curator: Exactly. Frank isn't just documenting; he's offering a commentary on power dynamics and social inequalities prevalent at the time. And how those imbalances permeate cultural narratives. Seeing these fleeting moments frozen in time—do they speak to current inequalities, too? Editor: I think they do, particularly when thinking about who is afforded leisure and freedom of movement. Looking at the photograph with that context adds so much more meaning to this work. Curator: Indeed, this work urges us to question whose stories are told, and who gets to define the "American Dream."