Men at auto dealership--Gallup, New Mexico 1955

Robert Frank's photograph, *Men at auto dealership--Gallup, New Mexico*, captures a specific moment in time, but the way Frank uses light and shadow turns it into something more. There's a gritty immediacy to the image, like he just grabbed it right out of the air. Look at how the smoke from their cigarettes curls and twists, it's almost a character in itself. It's a reminder of the fleeting nature of moments, how they disappear as soon as they arrive. The texture is raw, honest. You can almost feel the grain of the film, the cheapness of the paper. There's a tension between the different figures in the frame, that feels very charged. Frank’s pictures remind me a little of Walker Evans, but Evans is more formal. Frank has a casual quality. This photograph isn’t really about these men or the car dealership, but about a state of mind. It’s like a visual poem that speaks to a deeper understanding of ourselves.