Central casting--Hollywood 18/Lines of My Hand 66 1958

Editor: Here we have Robert Frank’s "Central Casting - Hollywood 18 / Lines of My Hand 66" from 1958, a gelatin silver print depicting a film strip. The many faces feel dehumanizing and regimented; the marked images, in particular, evoke a sense of disposability. How do you see this work relating to power dynamics in Hollywood at that time? Curator: I think you’ve nailed the core tension, here. Frank isn't just documenting; he's making a critical statement about the culture industry and its impact on individual identity. Consider the social context of 1950s Hollywood: studios held immense power over actors' careers and personal lives. Editor: It’s almost as if the people were products or goods. Curator: Precisely. This “casting” call represents an industrial process of creating celebrity, one that's rooted in gendered, raced, and classed power structures. What about the image suggests mass production, for you? Editor: The grid-like structure, the rows of similar images... like cogs in a machine. It really brings home the idea of the individual being reduced to a type or a stereotype. What about the marked images – the X and the circle? Curator: Those marks are crucial. The redlining feels violently decisive. Who decides who's "in" and who's "out", and on what criteria? Remember, this was the era of the blacklist, of deep social conservatism. To what extent can an image push viewers to examine those dynamics? Editor: So Frank's not just taking pictures, he is actively making a statement. Curator: Absolutely. He challenges the idea of the "American Dream" and forces us to confront uncomfortable truths about power, privilege, and exclusion. Editor: This has completely changed the way I see this image. It's not just a series of faces; it's a powerful commentary on the Hollywood machine. Curator: And how that machine reflected, and amplified, existing inequalities in American society. Hopefully, this image serves as a point of reflection in what, if anything, has changed since the 50's, and what hasn't.