Untitled (Two boys, East New York)

Frank Espada, Untitled (Two boys, East New York), 1964, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center, 2015.22.8, © 1964, Frank Espada Photography
Copied Frank Espada, Untitled (Two boys, East New York), 1964, gelatin silver print, frame: 9 × 13 1⁄2 in. (22.9 × 34.3 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center, 2015.22.8, © 1964, Frank Espada Photography

Artwork Details

Title
Untitled (Two boys, East New York)
Artist
Date
1964
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
frame: 9 × 13 1⁄2 in. (22.9 × 34.3 cm)
Copyright
© 1964, Frank Espada Photography
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center
Mediums Description
gelatin silver print
Classifications
Subjects
  • Cityscape — New York — New York
  • Cityscape — street
  • Children
  • Figure male — child — full length
  • Architecture Exterior — commercial — store
Object Number
2015.22.8
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2015.22.8

Artwork Description

Some of Espada's photographs of children take on a psychological dimension. One boy smiles at the camera as his playmate assumes a tough demeanor and holds a toy gun in his left hand. Their body language demonstrates two different responses to Espada's presence and their environment.

Down These Mean Streets: Community and Place in Urban Photography, 2017
Description in Spanish

Algunas de las fotografías de niños tomadas por Espada incorporan una dimensión psicológica. Un chico sonríe ante la cámara mientras que su compañero de juegos asume una pose desafiante y agarra en su mano izquierda una pistola de juguete. El lenguaje corporal de los niños muestra dos respuestas diferentes à la presencia del fotógrafo y a su entorno.

Por estas calles bravas: Comunidad y lugar en la fotografía urbana, 2017

Exhibitions

Photograph of children playing in the water from a fire hydrant by Hiram Maristany
Down These Mean Streets: Community and Place in Urban Photography
May 11, 2017–August 5, 2017
Smithsonian American Art Museum
America’s urban streets have long inspired documentary photographers. After World War II, populations shifted from the city to the suburbs and newly built highways cut through thriving neighborhoods, leaving isolated pockets within major urban centers.