Robert Frank Looking In

jmal · Jan 29, 2009

Just in case there are any Robert Frank fans that are not aware of this, there is a new book that accompanies the current exhibition at the National Gallery in D.C. I just received mine yesterday and it is by far the most exhaustive look at Frank's work and The Americans in particular (over 500 pages). It's a gold mine. In addition to 40 Photos, B&W Things, some of Peru, The Americans, and miscellaneous other photos, it also contains 83 pages of contact sheets, essays, and many comparisons of cropping from edition to edition of The Americans. Get it before it fades into the OOP lists as all photo books seem to do over time.

Pinholemaster · Jan 29, 2009

I'm hoping to visit this show very soon. Told all my students to get down there, too. Looking forward to adding this book to the collection.

Thanks for posting.

jmal · Jan 29, 2009

I should also point out that the hardcover expanded edition that has the contact sheets.

MikeSeb · Jan 29, 2009

I presume this is the one you mean; ISBN 3865218067 ?

jmal · Jan 29, 2009

That's the one, Mike.

Trask · Jan 29, 2009

How's the printing? I'd not want to buy a copy if the printing is only so-so.

Barry S · Jan 29, 2009

The book looks great; hopefully the printing is decent. I'm psyched to see the exhibit.

jmal · Jan 30, 2009

I think the printing looks good. My initial impression is that it looks better than the recently released version of The Americans. I wish I still lived in the DC area, so I could see the exhibit.

monosnaps · Jan 30, 2009

I quite like the recent versions, both The Americans and Paris have the look of being printed in the era the photographs were taken.
For something unusual I can recommend the book Come again by Robert Frank, its quite recent but by far my favourite of all the books I have bought in rcent years.

jmal · Jan 30, 2009

Is that the book that covers Lebanon? If so, I agree that it's a good book. I don't own it, but I have looked at it many times.

monosnaps · Feb 2, 2009

jmal said:
Is that the book that covers Lebanon? If so, I agree that it's a good book. I don't own it, but I have looked at it many times.

That's the one, quite unusual, beautifully printed and designed. Not really important but I am sure it will be very collectable in years to come.

Trask · Feb 2, 2009

I went to see the exhibit Sunday afternoon before returning home to watch the Superbowl -- an interesting juxtaposition. I enjoyed seeing the exhibit, reminded myself that I'd seen some of his London banker and Welsh (?) miner photographs at some other gallery. It was interesting to see a map of where he traveled while on his Guggenheim, see the proof prints that he marked up when he composed the book, and see the contact sheets -- which revealed he shot a lot of Plus-X, some Tri-X, and Super-X. As for the photographs, I'll have to admit that Cartier-Bresson's and Gene Smith's affect me more, but that may be a reflection of their seeming greater attention things like focus and framing. Some shots were excellent, and it was interesting to read this rationale for how he sequenced the photos in "The Americans". All in all, I'm glad I went -- who could turn out a free exhibit like that, anyway?

Miskuss · Feb 2, 2009

Well, thanks jmal. I just bought it online along with "Henri Cartier Bresson Scrapbook" I promised myself that I would show restraint in book buying this year and spend it on home renovations. I'm so weak when it comes to books. I need to be treated for it someday because I am amassing a fair collection of books and enjoy them immensely. (How sick is that!) My friends think that I need cable TV and I'll be okay.

Thanks for the heads up on a book that would have escaped my attention. And now it is back to "Edward Steichen Lives in Photography"

jmal · Feb 3, 2009

Miskuss, those are two books worth having. I feel richer for having them on my shelf. I keep looking at the Frank book and am in awe of how much it contains. Same with Scrapbook. We need to start a support group for book addicts. I'm in serious jeopardy.

Miskuss · Feb 3, 2009

Yes, a 12 step support group for book addicts, relapse will be a constant topic of discussion.

I'm looking forward to Scrapbook. His only other book I have is America in Passing. I've been on the look out for a good book by Andre Kertesz as well. Any recommendation?

jmal · Feb 3, 2009

Kertesz is probably my favorite. There are two very good monographs:

http://www.amazon.com/Andre-Kertesz...=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233667921&sr=8-9

This one has reproductions that are the actual size of the contacts from his early period. The later photos are reproduced as larger spreads.

http://www.amazon.com/Andre-Kertesz...r_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233667921&sr=8-14

This second book has larger reproductions and might be better for general viewing. Both are out of print, so you can find them used pretty cheaply. I have both and they compliment each other well.

Miskuss · Feb 3, 2009

Thanks, they look like good. I'll have to wait until next months Visa is cleared up.
If can make a recommendation, you being a Kertesz aficionado.

Sylvia Plachy's "Unguided Tour" Aperture, long out of print, but the two where friends and his influence is reflected in her work, especially on the streets. In my humble opinion.

Soon I will be calling my sponsor up on the phone. "I'm on the Amazon site and I'm ready to click one step buying" "please talk me through it!" LOL!

jmal · Feb 4, 2009

Just one last...book...

Miskuss · Feb 16, 2009

Hey Jmal, I got the book today. Thanks for the heads up. I'm really excited by the content. Well worth the bucks.
Cheers'
Ted

Barry S · Mar 11, 2009

I went to the Robert Frank exhibit this week and it's a fantastic show. The exhibit is large and the prints have plenty of space to breathe. It's incredibly comprehensive with various editions of The Americans on display and I got a chill seeing Jack Kerouac's original introduction. Plus the proof sheets (a bit hard to see in the dim light) and a huge wall of his proof prints. Lot's of early images, experiments, and a video wall--this is an elaborate exhibit. I thought it was fascinating that Frank was shooting these beautiful dark raw images and submitting them to Life Magazine--which promptly rejected them, but ultimately the rejected images have more gravitas than what was getting published at the time. The passage of time has done nothing to diminish the importance of Frank's work. See this exhibit.

Trask · Mar 12, 2009

I posted on this thread about a month ago that I'd gone to the "The Americans" exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in DC. And now, yesterday, I went to the "The Americans" exhibit at the Jeu de Paume museum here in Paris. Same photos, but a very different feel. What struck me the most is that the photos in Paris are smaller, all set at eye level, and therefore easier for me (at least) to view comfortably. And the smaller size meant that I could view and "seize" the photograph visually more easily than a larger print were I'd have to move my eyes around to the different parts of the print and assimilate them. Anyway, it was interesting to see how the different manners of presentation affected how the photos were viewed --that, and the fact that the prints in Paris seemed exposed and developed in a manner that I preferred to what I remember of the Washington exhibit.

There were also about 30 or so prints he'd taken in Paris before heading back to the US to shoot "The Americans". Some nice pictures, but you could see that the vision that created The Americans had not yet arrived.

EASmithV · Mar 12, 2009

I went down and saw it yesterday. I love looking at the contact sheets. My favorite picture was that one of the couple that looked like they had just gotten married. I didn't think too much of his movies though.

Robert Frank Looking In

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