Bank--Iowa 1956

Editor: We're looking at Robert Frank's "Bank--Iowa" from 1956, a gelatin-silver print. There's a somber feel to it, with these men captured in a moment of quiet labor, maybe even boredom. What details strike you most about this image? Curator: What stands out is the tension between the visible labour and its abstraction. We see these men writing, likely working at mundane administrative tasks within the banking system. But what is the final material product of this effort? Frank compels us to think about the relationship between the tangible and the intangible within the structure of capitalist industry. Are these blue-collar or white-collar workers, and what does the absence of women suggest? Editor: That's a fascinating point. I was mostly drawn to the visual elements. The contrasting body language - one man standing with hands on his hips, and two men absorbed in desk work - creates an immediate sense of dissonance. Do you see this contrast as significant? Curator: Absolutely. Think about the physical exertion implied versus the almost passive engagement of the other workers with this task, this engagement mediated by pens and paper. We're talking about different types of labor, but the photo implies also potentially different positions within a power structure, all ultimately supporting the larger economic machine. And don't forget that Frank is creating an object that gets consumed within this industry too - the photo print itself. Editor: That's really interesting; I hadn’t thought about the photograph itself as a product within that cycle. I am wondering if focusing solely on materiality may obscure some deeper analysis about other contexts? Curator: That's a fair challenge; maybe it's my lens after all. Editor: Well, now I’m starting to see things in a completely new way. I’ll never be able to look at street photography quite the same again.