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Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy - Yale Commencement — New Haven Green, New Haven, Connecticut

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Image of Yale Commencement — New Haven Green, New Haven, Connecticut

Robert Frank , (Nov 9, 1924–Sept 9, 2019)

Yale Commencement — New Haven Green, New Haven, Connecticut

1955-1956
8 3/4 in. x 13 1/8 in. (22.23 cm x 33.34 cm)

Medium and Support: gelatin silver print
Credit Line: museum purchase
Accession Number: 1989.77.21

Commentary

First published in France in 1958, then in the United States in 1959 at the height of the cold war, Robert Frank’s The Americans is one of the most important and influential photography books of the twentieth century. The Addison is one of only three American museums to own a complete set of these compelling images.

In 1955-56, a Guggenheim Fellowship allowed Frank, a Swiss-born photographer, to travel throughout the United States with the goal of creating a book of photographs that he described as a “visual study of a civilization.” An outsider looking in, Frank’s dark and grainy photographs reveal his ambivalence toward his new country. Edited down from thousands, the eighty-three carefully sequenced photographs are a raw and insightful documentation of a country in transition, both celebrating its strengths and exposing the cracks in the veneer of hope and optimism that defined postwar culture. As Jack Kerouac wrote in the introduction to the book, “Robert Frank, Swiss, unobtrusive, nice, with that little camera that he raises and snaps with one hand, he sucked a sad poem right out of America onto film.”

Allison Kemmerer
Curator of Photography and Contemporary Art

Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:

Related Parent(s) Click a record to view
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The Americans
1989.77.1-84

Related Siblings(s) Click a record to view
Image of Parade — Hoboken, New Jersey
Parade — Hoboken, New Jersey
1989.77.1
Image of Candy store — New York City
Candy store — New York City
1989.77.10
Image of Motorama — Los Angeles
Motorama — Los Angeles
1989.77.11
Image of New York City
New York City
1989.77.12
Image of Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
1989.77.13
Image of Ranch market — Hollywood
Ranch market — Hollywood
1989.77.14
Image of Butte, Montana
Butte, Montana
1989.77.15
Image of Yom Kippur — East River, New York City
Yom Kippur — East River, New York City
1989.77.16
Image of Fourth of July — Jay, New York
Fourth of July — Jay, New York
1989.77.17
Image of Trolley, New Orleans
Trolley, New Orleans
1989.77.18
Image of Canal Street—New Orleans
Canal Street—New Orleans
1989.77.19
Image of City fathers — Hoboken, New Jersey
City fathers — Hoboken, New Jersey
1989.77.2
Image of Rooming house — Bunker Hill, Los Angeles
Rooming house — Bunker Hill, Los Angeles
1989.77.20
Image of Cafe—Beaufort, South Carolina
Cafe—Beaufort, South Carolina
1989.77.22
Image of Georgetown, South Carolina
Georgetown, South Carolina
1989.77.23
Image of Bar — Las Vegas, Nevada
Bar — Las Vegas, Nevada
1989.77.24
Image of Hotel lobby — Miami Beach
Hotel lobby — Miami Beach
1989.77.25
Image of View from hotel window — Butte, Montana
View from hotel window — Butte, Montana
1989.77.26
Image of Metropolitan Life Insurance Building — New York City
Metropolitan Life Insurance Building — New York City
1989.77.27
Image of Jehovah's Witness — Los Angeles
Jehovah's Witness — Los Angeles
1989.77.28
Image of Bar — Gallup, New Mexico
Bar — Gallup, New Mexico
1989.77.29
Image of Political rally — Chicago
Political rally — Chicago
1989.77.3
Image of U.S. 30 between Ogallala and North Platte, Nebraska
U.S. 30 between Ogallala and North Platte, Nebraska
1989.77.30
Image of Casino — Elko, Nevada
Casino — Elko, Nevada
1989.77.31
Image of U.S. 91, leaving Blackfoot, Idaho
U.S. 91, leaving Blackfoot, Idaho
1989.77.32
Image of St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg, Florida
1989.77.33
Image of Covered car — Long Beach, California
Covered car — Long Beach, California
1989.77.34
Image of Car accident — U.S. 66, between Winslow and Flagstaff, Arizona
Car accident — U.S. 66, between Winslow and Flagstaff, Arizona
1989.77.35
Image of U.S. 285, New Mexico
U.S. 285, New Mexico
1989.77.36
Image of Bar — Detroit
Bar — Detroit
1989.77.37
Image of Barber shop through screen door — McClellanville, South Carolina
Barber shop through screen door — McClellanville, South Carolina
1989.77.38
Image of Backyard — Venice West, California
Backyard — Venice West, California
1989.77.39
Image of Funeral — St. Helena, South Carolina
Funeral — St. Helena, South Carolina
1989.77.4
Image of Newburgh, New York
Newburgh, New York
1989.77.40
Image of Luncheonette — Butte, Montana
Luncheonette — Butte, Montana
1989.77.41
Image of Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe, New Mexico
1989.77.42
Image of Bar — New York City
Bar — New York City
1989.77.43
Image of Elevator — Miami Beach
Elevator — Miami Beach
1989.77.44
Image of Restaurant — U.S. 1 leaving Columbia, South Carolina
Restaurant — U.S. 1 leaving Columbia, South Carolina
1989.77.45
Image of Drive-in movie — Detroit
Drive-in movie — Detroit
1989.77.46
Image of Mississippi River, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Mississippi River, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
1989.77.47
Image of St. Francis, gas station, and City Hall — Los Angeles
St. Francis, gas station, and City Hall — Los Angeles
1989.77.48
Image of Crosses on scene of highway accident — U.S. 91, Idaho
Crosses on scene of highway accident — U.S. 91, Idaho
1989.77.49
Image of Rodeo — Detroit
Rodeo — Detroit
1989.77.5
Image of Assembly line — Detroit
Assembly line — Detroit
1989.77.50
Image of Convention hall — Chicago
Convention hall — Chicago
1989.77.51
Image of Men's room, railway station — Memphis, Tennessee
Men's room, railway station — Memphis, Tennessee
1989.77.52
Image of Cocktail party — New York City
Cocktail party — New York City
1989.77.53
Image of Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
1989.77.54
Image of Beaufort, South Carolina
Beaufort, South Carolina
1989.77.55
Image of Funeral — St. Helena, South Carolina
Funeral — St. Helena, South Carolina
1989.77.56
Image of Chinese cemetery — San Francisco
Chinese cemetery — San Francisco
1989.77.57
Image of Political rally — Chicago
Political rally — Chicago
1989.77.58
Image of Store window — Washington, D.C.
Store window — Washington, D.C.
1989.77.59
Image of Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
1989.77.6
Image of Television studio — Burbank, California
Television studio — Burbank, California
1989.77.60
Image of Los Angeles
Los Angeles
1989.77.61
Image of Bank — Houston, Texas
Bank — Houston, Texas
1989.77.62
Image of Factory — Detroit
Factory — Detroit
1989.77.63
Image of Department store — Lincoln, Nebraska
Department store — Lincoln, Nebraska
1989.77.64
Image of Rodeo — New York City
Rodeo — New York City
1989.77.65
Image of Movie premiere—Hollywood
Movie premiere—Hollywood
1989.77.66
Image of Charity ball — New York City
Charity ball — New York City
1989.77.67
Image of Cafeteria — San Francisco
Cafeteria — San Francisco
1989.77.68
Image of Drug store — Detroit
Drug store — Detroit
1989.77.69
Image of Navy Recruiting Station, Post Office — Butte, Montana
Navy Recruiting Station, Post Office — Butte, Montana
1989.77.7
Image of Coffee shop, railway station — Indianapolis
Coffee shop, railway station — Indianapolis
1989.77.70
Image of Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga, Tennessee
1989.77.71
Image of San Francisco
San Francisco
1989.77.72
Image of Belle Isle, Detroit
Belle Isle, Detroit
1989.77.73
Image of Public park — Cleveland, Ohio
Public park — Cleveland, Ohio
1989.77.74
Image of Courthouse square — Elizabethville, North Carolina
Courthouse square — Elizabethville, North Carolina
1989.77.75
Image of Picnic ground — Glendale, California
Picnic ground — Glendale, California
1989.77.76
Image of Belle Isle, Detroit
Belle Isle, Detroit
1989.77.77
Image of Detroit
Detroit
1989.77.78
Image of Chicago
Chicago
1989.77.79
Image of En route from New York to Washington, Club Car
En route from New York to Washington, Club Car
1989.77.8
Image of Public park — Ann Arbor, Michigan
Public park — Ann Arbor, Michigan
1989.77.80
Image of City Hall — Reno, Nevada
City Hall — Reno, Nevada
1989.77.81
Image of Indianapolis
Indianapolis
1989.77.82
Image of U.S. 90, en route to Del Rio, Texas
U.S. 90, en route to Del Rio, Texas
1989.77.83
Image of Untitled (3 views)
Untitled (3 views)
1989.77.84
Image of Movie premiere — Hollywood
Movie premiere — Hollywood
1989.77.9

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