Venice, Italy 26 1964

Robert Frank took this gelatin silver print, "Venice, Italy 26," and daubed it with red paint. It's a photographer looking and marking and circling, just like a painter. I’m trying to imagine what Frank was thinking when he circled those figures and how they would look isolated in a sea of gray. What did he want us to focus on? The gestures, the light, the whole scene? The photos give me that buzz of recognition, that "I’ve been there" feeling. Maybe you recognize that buzz too. Frank, like so many artists, was in constant conversation with others. He experimented with different ways of seeing and showing the world. He played with light, shadow, and perspective, inviting us to contemplate the world and to reflect on our experiences. Photography is a language that keeps evolving, with each artist building on what came before. It's a continuous process of inquiry, with endless room for interpretation.