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Robert Frank
1924–2019

Introduction

Robert Frank (November 9, 1924 – September 9, 2019) was a Swiss American photographer and documentary filmmaker. His most notable work, the 1958 book titled The Americans, earned Frank comparisons to a modern-day de Tocqueville for his fresh and nuanced outsider's view of American society. Critic Sean O'Hagan, writing in The Guardian in 2014, said The Americans "changed the nature of photography, what it could say and how it could say it. [ ... ] it remains perhaps the most influential photography book of the 20th century." Frank later expanded into film and video and experimented with manipulating photographs and photomontage.

Wikidata identifier

Q467574

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Information from Wikipedia, made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Accessed February 28, 2024.

Introduction

From 1940 to 1941, Frank worked as an apprentice in a Basel photographic studio and later as a photographer for Gloria Films in Zurich. He emigrated to the United States in 1947 and settled in New York City, contributing photographs to various publications. In 1948 he traveled to Peru and Bolivia, and from 1949 to 1951 he worked in England, Wales, United Kingdom and France. In 1955, Frank travelled across the United States taking photographs for his book 'The Americans.' From 1957 to 1969 he worked as a photographer, filmmaker, and independent producer in New York City, eventually moving to Nova Scotia in 1969 with his wife, artist June Leaf.

Country of birth

Switzerland

Roles

Artist, cinematographer, collagist, documentary filmmaker, photographer, video artist

ULAN identifier

500019916

Names

Robert Frank, Robert Louis Frank

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Information from the Getty Research Institute's Union List of Artist Names ® (ULAN), made available under the ODC Attribution License. Accessed February 28, 2024.