Robert Frank in his Bleecker Street Studio, New York Possibly 1994 - 2011

Barry Kornbluh made this photograph of Robert Frank in his Bleecker Street studio in New York. It is, in fact, two images, two moments in time, side by side. Kornbluh captures Frank as a tired looking man, maybe weary of being in the world, or maybe just weary of the camera. The diptych gives us Frank in two moods, or from two perspectives. On the left, he is in profile, looking away. On the right, he looks directly at us, confronting us. These are two different psychological spaces that make one whole. What’s so beautiful here is the grayness, the tones, which are like Rothko. Kornbluh uses the gradations of gray, from the almost white shirt to the deep, dark shadows behind Frank, to create a somber feeling. Like a painting, the shades of gray become the emotional content of the work. It's like looking at a soul laid bare. And that's the magic of photography at its best.