Robert Frank
Robert Frank was born in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1924. He became interested in photography as a teenager and worked with several photographers in Switzerland before moving to the United States in 1947, at the age of 22. He settled in New York and started working as a freelance photographer.
Robert Frank
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«I was very free with the camera. I didn’t think of what would be the correct thing to do; I did what I felt good doing».
In New York, Frank worked for magazines and travelled in Europe and South America. He also began using a small 35mm Leica camera, which allowed him to move quickly and photograph people and streets without much preparation.
In 1955, Frank received a Guggenheim Fellowship and set out to photograph the United States. He travelled by car through different parts of the country, photographing cities, small towns, diners, cars, workers, families and political events. He was interested in everyday life, not in the polished image of America often seen in magazines.
In 1955, Frank received a Guggenheim Fellowship and set out to photograph the United States. He travelled by car through different parts of the country, photographing cities, small towns, diners, cars, workers, families and political events. He was interested in everyday life, not in the polished image of America often seen in magazines.
The trip became The Americans, his most famous project. Frank shot almost 800 rolls of film during the journey, but only 83 photographs were included in the book. Les Américains was published in France in 1958, followed by the American edition in 1959, with an introduction by Jack Kerouac.
The photographs showed a different side of postwar America. Frank photographed racial segregation, social differences, loneliness and political life. American flags appear throughout the book, often next to people who seem separated from each other. His pictures could be grainy, blurred or slightly tilted. He left these details in the final work.
The photographs showed a different side of postwar America. Frank photographed racial segregation, social differences, loneliness and political life. American flags appear throughout the book, often next to people who seem separated from each other. His pictures could be grainy, blurred or slightly tilted. He left these details in the final work.
«My effort was to express it simply and without confusion».
When The Americans was published in the United States, it received strong criticism. Some photographers and critics disliked Frank's loose compositions and dark view of American life. The book later became an important work in the history of documentary photography and the photobook.
After The Americans, Frank moved into filmmaking. In 1959, he made Pull My Daisy with Alfred Leslie, with Jack Kerouac as narrator. The film featured members of the Beat generation. Frank continued making films and videos for many years.
After The Americans, Frank moved into filmmaking. In 1959, he made Pull My Daisy with Alfred Leslie, with Jack Kerouac as narrator. The film featured members of the Beat generation. Frank continued making films and videos for many years.
In the 1970s, Frank returned to photography and began making more personal work. He used photographs together with Polaroids, collage, handwriting and other materials. His later work often dealt with family, memory and loss. His daughter Andrea died in 1974, and this loss became part of his later work.
Robert Frank died in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2019 at the age of 94. He worked with photography, film and books for more than six decades. The Americans remains his best-known project, but his later work shows how much his photography changed over time.
Robert Frank died in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2019 at the age of 94. He worked with photography, film and books for more than six decades. The Americans remains his best-known project, but his later work shows how much his photography changed over time.