Robert Frank: Historical Background

Name: Professor’s name: Course: Date: Robert Frank Introduction The art of photography and photo artists alike have both gone through long periods of transitions over since the inception of the art with the invention of the first camera in 1839. The artistic expressions provided through the art of photography build on the premise of capturing real moments, situations, and circumstances from the perspective or the eye of the artist. Like many other forms of art, the chronological transitions in photography led to the formation of artistic guidelines or frameworks considered to be the basis for taking and producing excellent images. The standard rules or groundworks in photography were restrictive to the artist’s freedom of expression as they confined the artists to a limited scope of works guided by external factors such as the trends emerging across the social platforms of society as a whole. As such photography artists did not have the freedom of capturing the essence of the community and express their perspective on the intricate details of society without compromising the set standards of the art. However, the mid-20th century witnessed a revolution in the art of photography with the emergence of a new set of photographers with different mindsets and fearless approach towards the art with their unique techniques in taking photographs. Robert Frank, one of the most renowned and celebrated artists in photography, was at the forefront of the new wave of photographic expressions in the United States and around the world. The celebrated status he enjoys was, however, not the case at the onset of his career as with any change from the norm often comes with some resistance. Provided herein is a chronological account of the artist's journey towards becoming one of America’s iconic figure in the art of photography responsible for encouraging and increasing creativity in the profession. Historical Background Robert Frank was born on November 9th 1924 to a Swiss Mother and a German-Jewish father who lived in Zurich, Switzerland CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). He has an older brother with whom he spent his childhood in Switzerland where they were spared the atrocities of the German occupation of European countries and the massacre of Jews. The artist shares in the horror of the Holocaust, which he admits brought a gloomy atmosphere as the family was alive to the harsh treatment and brutal murder of Jews going on in their neighboring countries CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). Robert’s parents would turn to entrepreneurship to make money as an alternative for escaping the constant reminder of the harsh reality surrounding their home country, a fact which saddened the future artist. The artist’s disappointment with his parents over their obsession with money plays out or rather forms an influential factor towards forming one of the greatest careers in photography CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). It was Robert’s father, Hermann, who sparked the artist’s interest in photography following his amateurish experiments whenever he was not pursuing his money-making endeavors. Robert Frank took up an interest in photography at the age of seventeen following his father’s influence and joined a studio of photography in the city of Zurich as an apprentice CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). Robert Frank’s Training Robert Frank began his apprenticeship in photography in 1941 following the footsteps of a neighboring photographer Hermann Segesser who was also a retoucher CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). The internship lasted for a year upon which Robert Frankl joined up with a commercial photographer based in Zurich, Michael Wolgensinger CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). The commercial photographer introduced the young photographer in the making into big enterprises such as newspaper firms, the active magazine, as well as the book publishing industry CITATION Nat19 \l 1033 (Gallery, 2019). The six-year-long training period equipped Robert Frank with both the basic and advanced skills in photography as practised at the national level in Sweden and across the world. The artist had also internalized skills in modernistic photography, and photographic journalism from the magazine industry as well as the local style of photography which focused on capturing the beautiful sceneries of the nation. The art of photography lacked the diversity that Robert Frank sought to capture through his skills in the art which he had acquired from equally diverse sectors of society. The artist wanted to express his knowl...