In History of Photography, we covered American street photography and the work of Robert Frank.  I found his working method and dedication to photography inspiring for myself.  In my final essay, I covered my interest in serial photography and working on large projects.  The following reading response discusses my interests in a reading from Bystander: A History of Street Photography, Chapter 18 on Robert Frank.

1. Robert Frank expanded his narrative skills in Peru and paired these pictures in his book later in his career. In Peru, he began to see the world as elemental, photographing it in an instinctual way. He found his pictures “dumb” since he did not speak the language or understand the culture. However, Frank created interesting pictures lacking meaning but with a strong visual style. These Peru images seemed to be more symbolic, (by evoking death or sadness) and were used in a cinematic structure when when he paired them with New York pictures in “Black, White, and Things”.

2. The abstract expressionist artist’s work is inseparable from his biography. Frank was an outsider searching for a place and perspective on America . It is interesting how Frank used these awkward, outsider perspectives to look tirelessly for people or experiences. Being the “lone individual staring at the crowd” in American society, he searched for meaning in the country and the world. It is interesting to see how he found himself in the crowd as a child, watcher, or some sullen, depressed individual looking for something. Frank photographed many different scenes throughout America, finding himself in the moments and experiences along the way.

3. The Americans lacks conventional structure but suggests connections throughout the book between photographs. Frank’s 800 rolls of film allowed him to see similarities in (his/America’s) world, he was able to understand and control his subject matter to shape his artistic statement. By arranging these photographs into “symbol, cars, cities, people, signs, cemeteries and others” he laid out the photos in sections beginning with a flag. His book used the flag and gestural, photographic signals to create connections throughout the book.