Exterior of Freemont Hotel--Los Angeles c. 1955 - 1956

Editor: Here we have Robert Frank's "Exterior of Freemont Hotel--Los Angeles," a black and white photograph taken around 1955 or '56. It shows a cityscape dominated by the Freemont Hotel under construction, and holiday decorations create this oddly disjointed festive-yet-industrial feel. How do you read the image? Curator: What strikes me immediately is the process – the very *making* of Los Angeles evident in this unfinished hotel. Frank isn't romanticizing the city. He shows it raw, built by labor, block by concrete block. Even the celebratory wreaths feel…manufactured, almost as if the holiday cheer is also being constructed. Editor: That's an interesting perspective! I hadn't thought of the wreaths as also 'manufactured,' but I see what you mean. Does the photograph imply any commentary about this "making of" Los Angeles? Curator: Absolutely. Notice how the 'Valet Cleaners 121' sign almost blends with the larger structure; the photo puts labor—from the construction workers building the hotel to the unseen hands of the cleaners—into the frame. We should also note that street photography often captured what was being glossed over in mainstream publications. Frank may want us to confront labor realities hidden in plain sight. Editor: That's thought-provoking, it brings new meaning to the "street photography" classification that has been given to this artwork. The image documents not only the "how," but possibly, "at what cost." I’m left wondering who inhabited or labored within these spaces. Curator: Precisely. The visual language Frank employs highlights those material processes and the underlying conditions. Editor: I’ve always considered the "what" and never focused so much on "how" and the story behind that "how." Thank you! Curator: It’s all about interrogating what's *behind* the image itself. Thanks for asking.