Artist
Robert Frank American, born Switzerland, 1924–2019
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada
- from the series The Americans
Date1955–1956
PlaceLas Vegas, Nevada, United States
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 8 3/4 × 13 3/8 in. (22.2 × 34 cm)
Sheet: 10 15/16 × 13 7/8 in. (27.8 × 35.2 cm)
Sheet: 10 15/16 × 13 7/8 in. (27.8 × 35.2 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase
Object number84.145
Not on view
Explore Further
Department
PhotographyObject Type
Robert Frank’s most famous series, The
Americans, reveals the disparity between the optimism of the American
dream and the disillusionment of the everyday. In Bar,
Las Vegas, Nevada, the slumped posture and the blank stare of a man haunting
a bar at midday is not the image of the playful Las Vegas ideal, but is instead
a document of daily reality.
ProvenanceThe Pablo Frank Trust; purchased by MFAH, 1984.
Exhibition History"Public Information: Desire, Disaster, Document," San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, January 18–April 30, 1995.
"Rockin' and Rollin'," Galveston Arts Center, Texas, January 24–February 29, 2004.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
bottom left below image in ink " Las Vegas Nevada "
bottom right below image in ink " 1956 Robert Frank. "
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.
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Eric F. Greene
1964–1965
Album of gelatin silver prints
2020.137.57
