Charity Ball, 1954

Honestly, I knew very little about this artist or the book the exhibition is centered on before my visit. I had heard the name before but never connected the work with the artist. This exhibition, with all 83 photos from the book on view in sequential order, is small and managebale, has a tremendous impact on the viewer and is worth a trip to the Met. What struck me is that even though these images were taken over 50 years ago, many of them could be taken today. The issues that Frank brought up that highlight some of the faults of our country are still issues that we need to address such as classism and racism. For example the image Charity Ball from 1954 could have been taken last weekend at a holiday party in Manhattan. There are still those who think they are better than others because they have money or are educated. But this exhibition points out to us that we are all human and we are all Americans searching for a good life and happiness.

Original edition and cover, The Americans

In 1958 Frank’s book entitled The Americans was first published in France. The following year it would make its debut in the States. At first it was received with hostility as it forced viewers to see the nation as it really was, still segregated by race, economic and social standing. However, other photographers immediately recognized the book’s impact on changing the course of 20th century photography. He “looked beneath the surface of American life to reveal a people plagued by racism, ill-served by politicians, and rendered numb by the ever expanding consumer culture.” But at the same time, he managed to find beauty in the overlooked areas of our nation. Frank took innovative shots of roads, diners, people, and cars linking shots thematically in his book.

Parade-Hoboken, New Jersey, 1955

Born in 1924 in Switzerland he began taking photographs in 1941. In February of 1947 he immigrated to the United States. Hired to shoot fashion shots for Harper’s Bazaar, he quit soon after he began. Frank traveled for four years selecting one thing to photograph in each city he visited: hats in Peru, chairs and flowers in Paris, and banker in London. In 1955 he was awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship, bought a used Ford and headed on a 10,000 mile journey across the nation in an attempt to get a sense of the people of America. He developed 767 rolls of film after this journey which would later become the basis of the book.

Trolley, New Orleans, 1955

The Americans is divided into four sections, each beginning with a photograph of a flag and exploring a different aspect of the American culture. Section one investigates people, section two takes a look at inequality, section three examines religion, work, media, and politics, and the fourth section implies that US politics drown out the voices of average citizens and that Americans worship false icons such as celebrities and cowboys. Each image appears spontaneous and fleeting due to dynamic compositions, often with exposures that seem too light or too dark; this was something not previously done before. This project allowed Frank the freedom to only attempt to please himself in the photographs he took as opposed to his previous jobs pleasing magazine editors. He was able to find something remarkable in the mundane, the banal. The last image of the book is a shot of his wife and son in the car. “By standing outside the car and looking in, he acknowledged his need to separate himself from his family in order to create his art and the price they had to pay for his choice.” Shortly after the book’s publication, Frank abandoned photography for filmmaking.