BOSTON, MASS.- The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) has acquired 38 photographs by Robert Frank (1924-2019), one of the most important and influential photographers of the 20th century. These works represent the moment in 1949 when Swiss-born Frank returned to Europe following two years in New York City, with new perspectives and inspiration. In Paris, he observed and immortalized often unexpected scenes, while projecting abstract emotions and deep reflection onto Parisian objects and cityscapes, earning him the reputation of “a poet with a camera.” The acquisition includes 34 photographs gifted by The June Leaf and Robert Frank Foundation and an additional four purchased with funds donated by John and Cynthia Reed.
A publication based on Robert Frank: Mary’s Book will be published in early 2025, written by Kristen Gresh, the MFA’s Estrellita and Yousuf Karsh Senior Curator of Photographs and Stuart Alexander, Director of Research, The June Leaf and Robert Frank Foundation. This is the first time Mary’s Book will be fully reproduced.
The newly acquired photographs are on view in the exhibition Robert Frank: Mary’s Book, celebrating the centennial of the artist’s birth. Displayed alongside the personal scrapbook Frank made for his first wife, titled Mary’s Book, the photographs contextualize the album, providing a window into the artist’s creative process. Mary’s Book was created in 1949 for Mary Lockspeiser and consists of 75 small photographs with Frank’s written inscriptions. They reveal his appreciation for the poetic resonance of objects and spaces. Many of the photographs are devoid of people, although their presence is felt everywhere. Frank muses on the chairs and streets of Paris with messages interspersed for Mary. This one-of-a-kind, handmade album represents a formative moment in Frank’s career as he experiments with text and image juxtaposition.
“We are thrilled to add these important photographs to the Museum’s collection which give insight into Frank’s career while contributing to our ability to tell the story of artistic transatlantic connections,” said Kristen Gresh, Estrellita and Yousuf Karsh Senior Curator of Photographs. “We are deeply grateful to The June Leaf and Robert Frank Foundation for their gift, and to John and Cynthia Reed for their donation that made this acquisition possible.”
Robert Frank: Mary’s Book is on view from December 21, 2024 through June 22, 2025 in the MFA’s Herb Ritts Gallery and is included with general admission.
In addition to the acquisition of 38 photographs taken in Paris, the MFA has acquired the photo 4th of July, Jay, New York (1954) by Robert Frank. It was one of 83 pictures from Frank’s groundbreaking book, The Americans, published in a French edition in 1958 and in the U.S. in 1959. In the photo, Frank records the inhabitants of an Adirondack town celebrating the holiday in a public park, all dwarfed by a massive American flag. Tattered and translucent, the flag in this picture may well have inspired Frank’s regular repetition of stars and stripes throughout the book, along with other potent American symbols. This acquisition is supported by Barbara M. Marshall Fund, Horace W. Goldsmith Fund for Photography, and The Lane Collection—Saundra B. Lane Fund for Photography Acquisitions.
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