11th Street and Broadway
1951
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print mounted on paperboard
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed to image): 32.5 x 26.7 cm (12 13/16 x 10 1/2 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Robert Frank Collection, Gift of Robert Frank
Accession Number
1990.28.1
Art Historical Context
"11th Street and Broadway (1951) captures a fleeting moment at a bustling New York City intersection, crafted by Swiss-born photographer Robert Frank just as he was immersing himself in American urban life. Taken early in Frank's U.S. career, before his landmark photobook *The Americans* redefined documentary photography, this image reflects the post-World War II energy of mid-century Manhattan—streetcars, pedestrians, and everyday grit frozen in time. Frank's eye for the ordinary elevated street photography, blending candid observation with a subtle critique of modern society. Printed as a g...
About the Artist
Robert Frank
Robert Frank (1924-2019) was a Swiss-American photographer and documentary filmmaker whose revolutionary approach to documentary photography fundamentally transformed the medium and influenced generations of artists. Born in Zurich, Switzerland, on November 9, 1924, to a middle-class Jewish family, Frank began his photographic apprenticeship in 1941, working with commercial photographers before im...