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Robert Frank

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The Americans Hardcover – May 15, 2008

by Robert Frank (Author), Jack Kerouac (Author)

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First published in France in 1958, then in the United States in 1959, Robert Frank's The Americans changed the course of 20th-century photography

First published in France in 1958, then in the United States in 1959, Robert Frank's The Americans changed the course of twentieth-century photography. In 83 photographs, Frank looked beneath the surface of American life to reveal a people plagued by racism, ill-served by their politicians and rendered numb by a rapidly expanding culture of consumption. Yet he also found novel areas of beauty in simple, overlooked corners of American life. And it was not just Frank's subject matter--cars, jukeboxes and even the road itself―that redefined the icons of America; it was also his seemingly intuitive, immediate, off-kilter style, as well as his method of brilliantly linking his photographs together thematically, conceptually, formally and linguistically, that made The Americans so innovative. More of an ode or a poem than a literal document, the book is as powerful and provocative today as it was 56 years ago.

Print length

180 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Steidl
Publication date

May 15, 2008
Dimensions

8.25 x 1 x 7.25 inches
ISBN-10

386521584X
ISBN-13

978-3865215840
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From the Publisher

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this 50th anniversary reissue, celebrated photographer Frank maintains the format (left page: brief caption, right page: photo) and introduction (Jack Kerouac: "with the agility, mystery, genius, sadness and strange secrecy of a shadow Frank photographed scenes that have never been seen before on film"), the images themselves have been re-scanned, re-cropped by Frank and, in two cases, changed. Frank's images, taken all across the country, leave the viewer with a solemn impression of American life. From funerals to drug store cafeterias to parks, Frank recorded every shade of everyday life he encountered: the lower and upper classes, the living and dead, the hopeful and destitute, all the while experimenting with angle, focus and grain to increase impact. Preceding an exhibition that will tour U.S. galleries in 2009, this volume will no doubt introduce new generations to Frank's inimitable record of daily life fifty years ago. Kerouac says, fittingly, that "after seeing these pictures you end up finally not knowing any more whether a jukebox is sadder than a coffin"; those who don't comprehend Kerouac's comment have yet to experience this classic collection. 83 tri-tone plates.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

The exhibition is as comprehensive as it is ephemeral featuring a wealth of photographs, all of Frank’s books since 1947, and his films that he began focusing on in the early 1960s. -- Lisa Contag ― Artinfo

That is the miracle of great socially committed art: It addresses our sources of deepest unease, helps us to confront what we cannot organize or explain by making all of it unforgettable. -- Nicholas Dawidoff ― The New York Times Magazine

...Robert Frank changed history with the 83 images that appeared in his stark breakthrough “The Americans. -- Sam Whiting ― SFGate

His work is revolutionary in showing an America that was not seen, but also creating a way of seeing in photography that was new, powerful and charged. -- Ken Light ― San Francisco Chronicle

The photographs from his seminal book The Americans, which took a critical look at our nation’s life in the 1950s, are timeless. His work continues to inspire new generations to follow his path to see what is invisible in America. ― L'Oeil de la Photographie

[Frank] pioneered a whole new subject matter that we [now] define as icons: cars, jukeboxes, even the road itself. -- Scott Indrisek ― Artsy

The Americans challenged the presiding midcentury formula for photojournalism. Mr. Frank’s photographs ― of lone individuals, teenage couples, groups at funerals and odd spoors of cultural life ― were cinematic, immediate, off-kilter and grainy, like early television transmissions of the period. -- Philip Gefter ― New York Times

I can’t think of a single living artist who has as secure a status in his or her chosen field, and I doubt there will be one for some time. -- Jim Lewis ― LitHub

Each portrait tells its own story. -- Arthur Lubow ― New York Times

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Steidl; Revised edition (May 15, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 180 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 386521584X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-3865215840
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.25 x 1 x 7.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #186,070 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Margherita Maggiore

Wonterful photo book

Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2024

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It's a historical reportage of a famous photo reporter

Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2009

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If you want to understand the USA of today, 2009, there's no better time and place to start than with America in the mid 1950s, when the "post-war-cold-war-post-cold-war" culture first took shape, at the threshold of: rock and roll and youth culture; clvil rights, the end of Jim Crow, 'crossover' culture; global immigration, the culture of diversity; college as a normal expectation for lower-middle class kids; the Beat Generation, Hippies, the turn-on-drop-out culture; two kids, two income families, two cars in every garage, and above all a TV in every home. You'd have been quite a prophet if you'd foreseen 'what we are today' on the basis of 'what we were in 1950,' but the seeds were there.

If you want to 'see' the 1950s, you can do it. You don't need a time-machine. The 85 photographs in this famous collection, taken 'on the road' by the German-Swiss Robert Frank, are worth at least 85,000 words. All in black-and-white, eclectic and experimental in darkroom technology, almost none of them of 'famous' people or familiar sights, these carefully and thoughtfully sequenced photographs reveal more of the shadows upon the American Dream than the sparkling spot lights, but they are as uncompromisingly honest as a dental X-ray. Not a speck of caries can be hidden. Frank saw through the superficial smiles of the 1950s to the cavities of core city and rural poverty, racism, sexism, crassness, and forced conformity - the grotesque 1950s that Flannery O'Connor depicted in Wise Blood and other works, that James Dean and Marlon Brando portrayed in films, and that Jack Kerouac tried to flee by taking to "the road."

If you want to understand Kerouac - or the appeal of Kerouac to a generation of young Americans - you couldn't do better than spend some hours looking at these photos of the culture he fled from. And in fact, Kerouac himself played a role in getting Frank's work recognized and published. The introduction to the first edition of The Americans is possibly Kerouac's most intelligent and coherent piece of social analysis, almost a manifesto of dissatisfaction with the stifling mediocrity of his contemporary USA.

Robert Frank was above all a photographer. A camera artist. The compositional and technical innovations that he achieved in this and other thematic collections of photos nudged the aesthetic of photography in directions that are still evident even in commercials during football games or in fashion shots for auto ads. The huge touring exhibit of his work, now on display at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, has reminded me of his powerful impact both as a visual artist and as a social commentator. Don't miss it if you have a chance!

44 people found this helpful

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Gato

"Anybody doesn’t like these pitchers dont like potry

Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2015

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I didn't understand The Americans when it first came out, but I was young then. All these years later, after a career in photography and publishing, I begin to understand it and appreciate just how much Frank did. I don't know that Robert Frank invented photography as we know it today, but if not he certainly gave it a big push forward.

As Jack Kerouac said in his introduction: "Anybody doesn’t like these pitchers dont like potry, see? Anybody dont like potry go home see Television shots of big hatted cowboys being tolerated by kind horses."

Anyone interested in photography, either the practice or the art, should spend some time with this book. Otherwise just go watch TV.

Aside from the content, this edition is a very well made book, very nicely printed and bound. A joy to handle and look at.

5 people found this helpful

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Rafael Baquedano Charad

Cuando lo entiendes sabes por qué es tan importante

Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2023

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Antes de comprar este libro, recomiendo investigar sobre esta obra de Robert Frank. Es vital entender de qué se trata para no llevarse una sorpresa desagradable. Somos muchos los que despreciamos estas fotos de Frank hasta que entendimos de qué va The Americans.
Es muy expresivo y personal. Las fotografías pueden parecer obras individuales, pero hay conexiones entre ellas y no es difícil encontrarlas.
Es un gran libro porque cambió la forma de hacer en la fotografía documental.

One person found this helpful

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Wm. J. Shea

A Much Needed Classic

Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2023

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This book is the cornerstone foe seeing it as it is. Not a primer for image quality, but it shows the need for getting the shot regardless of other considerations. Much can be learned from the presentation of these images.

3 people found this helpful

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Joel Shiver

Worth the Money

Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2009

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The controversy surrounding this book is the perfectly natural - even compelled - result of the fact that 83 pictures cannot begin to represent the absolute infinite number of perspectives on life in the United States - or, the world, for that matter. Indeed, that it is titled "The Americans," with the intimation that it is a definitive photographic explication of the topic, demands the debate. Nevertheless, the pictures are deeply evocative and I am so pleased to have it in my library.

One other note on Mr. Frank. I became familiar with him through an interview on the Bob Edwards radio show related to the fiftieth anniversary of the book's publication. In that interview, Mr. Frank noted that he saw southerners in the fifties as "arrogant in their righteousness," and went to express his gratitude that things had changed since then. Having been born in the deep south in 1954, and having lived here all my life, I share some of Mr. Frank's gratitude that things have changed. However, pockets of the South remain backwards, despite the changes that have taken place around them. In these pockets, folks remain overbearing in their righteousness - arrogant and primitive in their fundamentalist religious faith. Often as not they abuse - simply because they can get away with it - those who don't think according to their prescribed and, sadly, myopic "norms." In these areas, anti-intellectualism is seen as a positive character trait.

But, if you have a genuine interest in - and are open to the idea of - seeing the world through insightful eyes, you wouldn't be wasting your money on this book.

3 people found this helpful

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Brian

Overall Top Quality

Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2021

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I purchased the hardcover and the overall quality of the book is excellent. It arrived shrink wrapped for extra protection. I think the size of the book is perfect. If you want a giant coffee table style book, do not buy. I really enjoyed the layout with 1 photo per 2 pages with a brief description on the other page for each photo. Images are excellent! All Black and White. Essential

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Luis Angel Cáceres Caravantes

Magnifico

Reviewed in Mexico on May 24, 2023

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Excelente libro

Johnny B

Very fast and exactly what I wanted!

Reviewed in Canada on August 3, 2022

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The book arrived in perfect shape and even sooner than expected.
This is very good!!!

R. Mauri

Capolavoro

Reviewed in Italy on February 17, 2024

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Un libro che non può mancare nella libreria di ogni appassionato di fotografia moderna. Robert Frank ha cambiato con questo libro la storia della fotografia e le sue immagini sono ormai immortali. Con una introduzione di Kerouc che inquadra il periodo storico, è da leggere e sfogliare ogni volta che si vuole tornare ad ammirare un pietra miliare della storia della fotografia. Ben stampato, economico, formato non grandissimo ma sufficiente per apprezzare le fotografie. Consigliato.

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Daniel

Obra maestra!

Reviewed in Spain on March 15, 2023

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Llegó antes de la fecha prometida
La encuadernación, papel, impresión... todo de muy buena calidad
Del libro en si mismo no puedo agregar nada que no se haya dicho ya: un trabajo imprescindible dentro de la fotografía del siglo XX
Recomendable 100%

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