Valencia, Spain 22
1952
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
contact sheet
Dimensions
overall: 21.1 x 23.7 cm (8 5/16 x 9 5/16 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Robert Frank Collection, Gift of Robert Frank
Accession Number
1990.28.1786
Art Historical Context
**Valencia, Spain ** by Robert Frank, created in 1952, offers a glimpse into the Swiss-born photographer's early explorations before his iconic road trips across America. Captured during travels in Spain, this work reflects Frank's emerging eye for candid street scenes, blending documentary realism with poetic intuition. At just 21.1 x 23.7 cm, it embodies the intimate scale of personal discovery in post-World War II Europe, where photographers like Frank sought raw, unfiltered glimpses of daily life amid cultural shifts. As a rare contact sheet—a direct print from film negatives—this medium ...
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...