Car auction--San Francisco 1956

"Car Auction--San Francisco" is a black and white photograph by Robert Frank. The shades of grey really set a mood, don’t they? It’s like a hazy memory. Frank wasn’t one for hiding the grain or the grit; he let the process show, which I really appreciate. I'm drawn to the texture, the way the light catches on the cars and the wall in the background. Look at the guy standing on the box, he’s the auctioneer, and then there's another man with a book standing beside him. These small details feel intentional. Frank isn’t afraid to let the world be messy. It reminds me of Diane Arbus, in the sense that Frank and Arbus were both unafraid to portray the world with its warts, in a way that some viewers interpret as ugly, but I see as beautiful and honest. Art doesn’t have to be pretty; it has to be real.