1950s America as Seen by Robert Frank & Todd Webb, with Lisa Volpe & Bill Shapiro

11/16/23 • 69 min

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1950s America proved fertile ground for photographers Robert Frank and Todd Webb, who both received Guggenheim Foundation grants to traverse the country in 1955 and record their respective visions. While Frank’s resulting book, The Americans, eventually made him a legend, Webb’s photographs remained unpublished, and were all but lost to history due to a 1970s-era business deal gone bad.

The saga of Webb’s unaccounted-for archive and its eventual recovery is one of the juicier tidbits from today’s show, which focuses on the long-awaited opportunity to compare, contrast, and rediscover Frank and Webb’s respective visions from their travels in the exhibition America and Other Myths.

Joining us in this discussion are Lisa Volpe, photography curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and Bill Shapiro, former Life magazine editor-in-chief.

Journey back to the Nifty Fifties astride these two photographers as we examine how two distinct proposals to discover America at mid-century evolved along the open road and in the context of the era’s social tenure.

In the words of Lisa Volpe, “They both saw the same social ills playing out in American culture, they just talked about them differently.”

Above photograph © The June Leaf and Robert Frank Foundation

Guests: Lisa Volpe & Bill Shapiro

For more information on our guests and they gear they use, see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/1950s-america-as-seen-by-robert-frank-todd-webb-with-lisa-volpe-bill-shapiro

Stay Connected: America and Other Myths Exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston: https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/robert-frank-todd-webb-across-america-1955 America and Other Myths exhibition catalog: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300270891/america-and-other-myths/ Robert Frank Archive at the MFAH: https://www.mfah.org/films/robert-frank-collection June Leaf & Robert Frank Foundation Website: https://leaffrankfoundation.org/ Todd Webb Archive: https://www.toddwebbarchive.com/news-events Blind Magazine articles by Bill Shapiro: https://www.blind-magazine.com/stories/on-the-road/ https://www.blind-magazine.com/stories/youre-wrong-about-robert-frank/ https://www.blind-magazine.com/stories/treasure-and-junk/ Robert Frank film footage from Blind Magazine: https://www.blind-magazine.com/stories/exclusive-never-before-seen-video-of-robert-frank/ Bill Shapiro Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billshapiro/ Todd Webb in Africa episode on the B&H Photography Podcast: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/podcast-todd-webb-in-africa%E2%80%94rediscovered-color-photographs

Joining us in this discussion are Lisa Volpe, photography curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and Bill Shapiro, former Life magazine editor-in-chief.

In the words of Lisa Volpe, “They both saw the same social ills playing out in American culture, they just talked about them differently.”

Above photograph © The June Leaf and Robert Frank Foundation

Guests: Lisa Volpe & Bill Shapiro

For more information on our guests and they gear they use, see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/1950s-america-as-seen-by-robert-frank-todd-webb-with-lisa-volpe-bill-shapiro

Previous Episode

Connecting the Creator Community: B&H Bild Ambush Interviews

B&H recently celebrated its 50th Anniversary, hosting a spectacular two-day celebration for the creator community, Bild Expo 2023, at New York’s Jacob Javits Center. The podcast’s past three episodes have featured in-depth interviews with a few of the esteemed speakers gracing Bild’s four presenter stages. If you haven’t already done so, please give them a listen, and then—hold on to your hats—in this episode we’re trying something different!

To prepare for some fun during the show, we assembled a mobile studio and cooked up a three-question Bild Creator Quiz to spring on imagemakers who crossed our path. Once at Javits, we went on the prowl for subjects willing to be ambushed. Our resulting interviews feature a select group of attendees, expo vendors, Bild speakers, and B&H staff members. Ever since the show wrapped, we’ve been hard at work, combining the short clips we captured live with a narrated story line to take listeners on a virtual stroll through most aspects of the show. We hope you enjoy this taste of the intense, intoxicating, creative camaraderie that permeated the Bild experience.

Happy Anniversary B&H—here’s to another 50 years of creativity and growth!

Above photograph courtesy of B&H Photo

Guests: Menashe Horowitz, Cliff Hausner, Mason Resnick, Michael Yamashita, Matt Hill, Nicolas Roman, Elizabeth Krist, Scott Kelby, Christian Domecq, John Harris, Ron Magill, Michael Mansfield, Patricia Beary, Linda Hacker, Erica Price, Brandon Remler, Dana Glidden, Ami Vitale, David Brommer

For more information on our guests and they gear they use, see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/connecting-the-creator-community-bh-bild-ambush-interviews

Stay Connected: B&H Photo Instagram Feed: https://www.instagram.com/bhphoto/ Cliff Hausner: https://www.instagram.com/cliffhausner/ Mason Resnick: https://www.instagram.com/mason_resnick/ Michael Yamashita: https://www.instagram.com/yamashitaphoto/

Matt Hill: https://www.instagram.com/matthillart/

Elizabeth Krist: https://www.visualthinkingcollective.com/elizabeth-cheng-krist

Scott Kelby: https://www.instagram.com/scottkelby/

John Harris: https://www.instagram.com/jrockfoto/

Ron Magill: https://www.instagram.com/ronmagillwildlife/

Michael Mansfield/Maine Media Workshops: https://www.instagram.com/mainemedia/

Soho Photo Gallery: https://www.instagram.com/sohophotogallery/

Erica Price: https://www.instagram.com/eternalpixny/

Brandon Remler: https://www.instagram.com/brandonremler/

Dana Glidden: https://www.instagram.com/danadigital/

Ami Vitale: https://www.instagram.com/amivitale/

David Brommer: https://www.instagram.com/suspectphotography/

Next Episode

A History of Hip-Hop Photography: Encore Episode from November 2017

This episode of the B&H Photography Podcast was originally released on November 10, 2017. We revisit it today in honor of Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary, and the holiday of Thanksgiving.

With great thanks to Vikki Tobak and the Contact High Project, we welcome three photographers to our studio who are responsible for some of the most iconic images from the history of hip-hop. Janette Beckman, Eric Johnson, and Danny Hastings join us to tell the stories behind their photos of RUN-DMC, Wu Tang Clan, Lauryn Hill, and many others. We also speak about issues important to photographers, from on-set technique, to artistic collaboration and influence, to gear, to networking and, of course, copyright and image licensing. For us, this was a highly anticipated recording, and it did not disappoint. Whether you are a hip-hop fan interested in behind-the-scenes stories or a photographer looking for insight, join podcast host Allan Weitz, founding creative producer John Harris, and sound engineer Jason Tables for this epic chat.

Above photograph © Janette Beckman

Guests: Janette Beckman, Danny Hastings, Eric Johnson, and Vikki Tobak

For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/a-history-of-hip-hop-photography-encore-episode-from-november-2017

Stay Connected: Janette Beckman Website: https://janettebeckman.com/ Janette Beckman Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janettephoto/ Danny Hastings Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dannyhastings/ Upstairs at Eric’s: https://upstairsaterics.org/ Eric Johnson Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/upstairsaterics/ Vikki Tobak Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vikkitobak/ Vikki Tobak Contact High Project: https://www.contacthighproject.com/ Contact High Exhibition: https://www.mopop.org/exhibitions-plus-events/exhibitions/contact-high/