Ski pole in snow--Sports 1941 - 1945

This small photograph by Robert Frank captures a ski pole stuck in the snow. It's a seemingly simple gesture, the pole piercing the snow, but it speaks volumes. I imagine Frank, out in the cold, maybe a bit lonely, pressing the pole down, then seeing the possibilities of the shape left behind. The starkness reminds me of some of Agnes Martin’s subdued color fields, but here, nature provides the tone. It also reminds me of some of Ed Ruscha’s work, too, where the image is deadpan, but it's also about so much more. The circle that surrounds the pole reminds me of an eye, or a void. It is a really graphic mark, a singular moment of contact in a vast field of white. Maybe Frank was thinking about the trace we leave behind, both physically and emotionally, as we move through the world, one step, or ski, at a time.