Thursday, February 19, 2009

Harvey Pekar

The other night I attended an interview with Harvey Pekar, titled HARVEY PEKAR: AMERICAN SPLENDOR - An evening with America's most heroic anti-hero at The YIVO Institute For Jewish Research, as part of their "Comics and the Jewish American Dream" interview series (moderated by Danny Fingeroth).
I've been an admirer of Harvey's work for some time, so I jumped at the chance to see him talk, and he was as interesting and engaging and funny - in that Pekar-ish way - as one would expect.
Before the talk, I got to meet Harvey and take his portrait. I wasn't assigned to do it by anyone, and it wasn't for any particular project I'm working on. I just find Harvey a fascinating and inspiring character and someone who I knew I would be able to make a great portrait of, which I would be able to add to my life's work. Thanks to Dean Haspiel, Jeff Newelt and Harold Steinblatt for helping me make it happen, and to Harvey Pekar for allowing me to capture him.

Photobucket

9 comments:

Mike Rhode said...

Excellent shot!

Anonymous said...

The shot is indeed excellent. Like some of your other shots, you apply light and shadow to subjects that have depth, in ways more than one. It is photographic Rembrandt, one of my favorite styles.

Anonymous said...

Destined to be a classic. Both Harvey, AND your photgraph!

Joseph Ernest said...

Hey,

This is a really really fantastic picture. Capture's everything that the Harv-meister is about I reckon.

Unknown said...

I made a video with Harvey Pekar the same day! I have 20 more episodes online! http://www.youtube.com/joshmccutchen.

Experience New York City as your host Josh McCutchen searches for Adventure in the city that never sleeps. Witness the manifestation of interactive weirdness between Josh and the People of Earth. This is known as "The Rich Magic Moment Experience".

The Josh McCutchen Show Delivers Exciting Entertainment! Celebrity Interviews. Bizarre Locals. Dance Remix Mash-ups. Crazy Music Videos. ADHD Quick Edits. Bright Colors. Prophetic Visions. Night Terrors. Guaranteed Fresh. Expect the Unexpected! All from the comfort of your own Environment. Please Enjoy Responsibly.

Produced and Edited by Josh McCutchen ©2009

diana green said...

Seth, may I use this on my blog? Will not do so without permission....
Beautiful work.

Mark said...

I'm sure Harvey would approve. Great shot!

Anonymous said...

What a great shot..This guy Pekar is so funny. As a fact I had heard that he likes to visit Viagra Online in his free time 'cause of his problems.

diana green said...

Spamming a dead guy about his sex life.
You're a class act, Anonymous.
BTW, I posted a (very) amateur video of one of Harvey's better stories.
http://trosper-ignatz-gentlegiant.blogspot.com/2010/08/original-art-sundays-53-dialogue-with.html