Weekend at Uribe's house no number 1953

Editor: This is "Weekend at Uribe's house no number," a gelatin-silver print made in 1953 by Robert Frank. The whole sheet of contact prints gives a voyeuristic vibe. What jumps out at you as you consider its place in history? Curator: What's fascinating is how this contact sheet reveals Frank's process, pushing against the idea of the decisive moment so celebrated at the time. This wasn’t about capturing a perfect single image, but a series of moments, implying duration, conversation. How does that sit with the tradition of photographic portraiture for you? Editor: It almost feels anti-establishment. Portraits are usually about projecting an ideal, and this is much more casual, spontaneous, very intimate somehow. Curator: Exactly. Post-war photography, particularly in the US, was often about constructing an image of national identity. But here, Frank shows us the informal, the domestic. Who has access to moments like these? Editor: Probably the social circle around Uribe? I imagine that at that time there were still constraints and social norms that affected how portraits of different social groups would be seen and produced. Curator: Precisely. Think about the role of institutions – galleries, magazines – in shaping who and what gets seen, and how. Does this shift your perspective on Frank’s choices at all? Editor: It makes me think about how easily we can get drawn in and create hierarchies without a critical eye to who dictates what matters. Thanks. Curator: My pleasure! The critical eye makes all the difference.