There’s something to be said about a person who has gotten hundreds of strangers to pose nude in public for photos and yet doesn’t come off as creepy. But when you’re balancing on a trashcan mid-day in downtown Cincinnati, trying to get a decent shot of four naked people walking alongside the Contemporary Arts Center, you don’t have time to ogle boobs.
There are far more pressing matters to consider: Does that fleet of bike cops know what’s about to happen? What if a group of children rounds the corner as the models are undressing? Will the CityBeat writer below be able to catch me if I lose my balance?
I can only imagine what was going through Ann Arbor, Mich.-based photographer Harvey Drouillard’s mind as he prepared to take this shot on a recent Friday afternoon.
Harvey — as he is known to many, including those around here who knew very little about him prior to participating in his photography project — was in town taking pictures of nude people in public, typically in front of various landmarks, a process he’s been working on for 21 years (down to the month). During his two-week stay, Harvey photographed 26 local volunteer models at more than 50 locations throughout Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.
As I learned from following along for a day, there is a lot to worry about when planning a nude, public photo shoot. But, interestingly enough, Harvey doesn’t do much worrying or planning. The day I observed, there was no tangible itinerary. Only one model got the memo to dress in easily removable clothing. Harvey didn’t even have an assistant to help facilitate contacting and vetting volunteers, creating schedules or even giving directions, much less moving gear and actually getting the photos developed.
Harvey is just a guy traveling around the country, photographing nudes with public landmarks because that’s the idea he came up with two decades ago. He’s a free spirit who has befriended locals and fallen in love with Cincinnati — an experience he hopes to replicate on future travels. Yet the question remains: Who is Harvey Drouillard and what is going on with all these nude photos? Even after spending time immersed in his project, I’m still not completely sure.
ϖϖϖ The 50-year-old photographer is super laid-back and friendly, so it’s fitting that he’s on a first-name basis with nearly everyone he meets. Every time I saw him, Harvey was outfitted in some kind of local business swag — a hat from Goodfellas Pizzeria, a T-shirt from Arnold’s Bar and Grill. For his outings, he wears two body cameras he calls “Harvey cams” (think old-school GoPros) to catch behind-the-scenes action.
The first roll of film he ever shot (in 1994) featured his first photos of nudes in public. He was taking a photography workshop in Ann Arbor and working with nude models when he looked out the window and inspiration struck.
“It just dawned on me how funny it would be if nude people were intermingled with clothed people on the street and it would happen so fast that no one would notice,” Harvey says. “That would be the funny part — that they didn’t notice.”
Traveling, peoples’ reactions (or lack there of) and the volunteer models’ individual experiences all come into play in the project, but the simple notion of making people smile — whether they’re looking at his photographs or witnessing it in real life — seems to be the overarching theme.
And while Harvey argues that the process isn’t more important than the product, the idea of regular people — often strangers — posing nude around their city with little preparation or organization is far more intriguing that a picture of butts in front of the CAC.
Simply put, Harvey likes taking photos of nude people in public places. When asked why he’s traveled to hundreds of locations in cities across the U.S. over the past 21 years photographing volunteer nude models, he doesn’t offer some grand, rehearsed artist’s statement. He just really likes it — and it seems the subjects, local arts patrons and witnesses do, too.
“The end goal is to keep doing it, to keep making art,” Harvey says. “I think any artist loves to make art.”
“I want to travel. I want to discover America. And I want to discover places that were significant to American history,” he continues. “Not to oversimplify it, but I just enjoy doing it. I think it actually keeps me young.”
Harvey descended on the Greater Cincinnati area early this month, planning only to stay a week. He found locals that would rent him a short-term room, and Goodfellas Pizzeria offered its upstairs bar at the Covington location as a meeting space (plus pizza for his volunteers). Harvey used Craigslist to find an area photographer to serve as a location scout and help him identify local landmarks to shoot, and that connection led to him securing a few models. But, by and large, most people involved found Harvey through word-of-mouth. And that’s very telling of this strange, spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment project.
Maybe you heard about him already. Harvey says his recent Cincinnati visit was the first time local news stories covered his nude photography before his first shot. There’s a chance you witnessed him in action and, in turn, a group of butt-naked folks walking around the city. Public nudity of any nature is pretty low-hanging fruit as far as media is concerned — of course outlets will report on it, especially in a “conservative city like Cincinnati” (though Harvey maintains he hasn’t experienced much to reinforce that description). But the only way to truly understand him and the project is to witness Harvey and his gang of nudes in action.
On a recent sunny but crisp Friday afternoon, Harvey met with five volunteer models in the upstairs bar at Goodfellas. By this point, folks could walk in and say only, “Harvey?” and employees would just point to the back stairs that lead to the bar. When I showed up, I couldn’t help but wonder if they assumed that I’d be up there getting naked, too.
Harvey’s works and the way he works are not for the faint of heart — and not just because of all the exposed private parts involved. There is not a tremendous amount of planning or organizing that goes into his photography outings.
Volunteer models trickle in and out of Goodfellas throughout the day, and many of them are meeting Harvey for the first time — he doesn’t know what they look like until they arrive. He has a plan of what and where he wants to shoot each day, but there’s no itinerary — he’d complete a shot and only then tell everyone where to head next. He has no assistant. I often stepped in as a lookout, held onto his cameras or the volunteers’ personal items, and helped him climb up and balance on a trashcan to get that shot of the nudes near Metrobot at the CAC. In some cities he’s used “getaway drivers,” but we were on our own that day.
The process is a control freak’s nightmare. But he does have something of a primer for all the volunteers.
First on his list: Always be aware of police and children. Harvey has developed hand signals to use if anyone notices either presence — touch your head if you spot a cop (while he seemed almost obsessed with getting a shot of nudes in the presence of a police officer or vehicle, he did not actually want to get caught or draw their attention to the nudity); brush the side of your leg if you see any children. Thumbs-up means drop trou.
No touching is another big rule — he doesn’t want anything to be misconstrued as sexual. The volunteers are instructed to be careful not to touch one another, even by chance.
Let him do the talking — if a passerby or police officer makes a comment or asks a question, don’t apologize or try to explain anything. Just try to get the shot and get dressed.
Another bit of preparation came in the form of practicing disrobing. In order to be as efficient as possible and get the best shots in a short amount of time without drawing too much attention, Harvey likes for his models to be able to undress completely, and then get covered back up within 10 seconds. Some of the volunteers that day had gotten the memo to dress in easily removable clothes (a stretchy strapless dress, athletic shorts, flip flops), others hadn’t (it’s really difficult to unlace boots, unhook a bra and get out of a starchy button-up shirt in a matter of seconds).
As two female volunteers sought out more appropriate attire for the day, three male volunteers lined up to practice. I sat among their belongings on the opposite side of the room, trying to look busy on my phone.
“Go!” Harvey yelled, holding a stopwatch. “Stand on top of your shoes to save time.”
“Stop!” he called at 10 seconds. They were all in various states of undress. They’d need to be faster.
“Go!” Harvey called out again, and again the guys removed their shirts, shorts and underwear, then pulled them all back on. Buttons and zippers are not our friends.
This repeated until everyone was able to get nude and then covered in the time frame. At this point I realized I hadn’t gotten any of these guys’ names, and yet I had seen them stark naked several times over.
Harvey compared the rush he and the models often get when taking these photos to getting pulled over by police. Maybe you’re panicking because you just left the bar or tossed out a joint, he explains, but the cop just wants to let you know about a busted taillight and lets you go. The excitement is certainly too much for some — Harvey mentions one eager volunteer who was ready to do the deed outside a Skyline but backed out last minute — but this rush is also a draw for many of the participants.
Once everyone had practiced and acquired clothing that was easy to work with, we set off for our first location: the University of Cincinnati. Harvey didn’t have room for all the models in his car, but thankfully someone else drove, so the group split up. I wondered if he had even considered transportation posing a problem (I often wondered if he had thought far enough ahead about a number of different things we were about to do).
We were told to meet at the “bearcat statue” — that was the closest thing to directions given — and after searching for a public parking spot and said monument for several minutes, the group reconvened and posed for its first shot of the day. Harvey likes to get clothed passersby in his shots, but campus was pretty dead that Friday. No one seemed to notice five naked people posing by the tribute to the school mascot.
Harvey then told us to head to Music Hall. When we got there, most of the volunteers seemed more concerned about leaving their cars in a no parking zone than walking across Washington Park without clothing. Harvey envisioned this shot as a play on a morning routine — the gang was instructed to split in half and walk toward one another from opposite sides of the park’s north end, with Music Hall in the background. He told them to act like they were walking to work, going about their daily business, greeting each other as they pass. None of that happened. On Harvey’s cue, the group quickly disrobed, tossing their clothes and shoes in a pile out of the camera’s view, and began walking toward Music Hall, not necessarily following any of his instructions, but that’s to be expected when working with amateurs. Harvey still got a shot he liked and commented that he finds it easier to teach volunteers what to do rather than to un-teach professional models that sometimes pose in unnatural ways.
We then made a pit stop at the Over-the-Rhine location of Goodfellas, where Harvey treated everyone to lunch. I could not comprehend the thought of scarfing down a giant slice of New York-style pizza prior to taking nude photographs, but it was definitely a kind gesture. We left soon after but would return for a photograph after playing a kind of human pinball around OTR and downtown for the next couple hours.
When we got to Japp’s, we quickly realized this would not be the easiest shot to achieve thanks to streetcar construction and a nearby police officer guiding traffic. The bar’s owner, Molly Wellmann, cheerfully welcomed us to wait inside while Harvey planned the shot. Like many locals at this point in Harvey’s stay here, Wellmann had heard about the elusive nude photography and was eager to be involved (albeit clothed). Harvey studied the cop’s routine and noticed that because of the flow of traffic, the officer would have no reason to turn around and catch them in the act. At the same time, Harvey was determined to somehow get the officer in the shot. He didn’t get a great image with nudes and the cop, but he did stage a scene where Wellmann set out the bar’s chalkboard sign as the nude models filed out of the bar. Although Japp’s wasn’t open to the public at that hour, there were some folks waiting to meet with Wellmann that were positively tickled to witness the shoot.
While Harvey didn’t get his perfect shot with law enforcement in the background, he definitely captured construction workers among nudes. Two female models walked naked alongside the streetcar line and yellow-vested workers on 12th Street as Harvey snapped away. Some didn’t notice — a very common occurrence throughout the day — while others stared and many simply didn’t understand what was happening until the women were already back in their clothes. We couldn’t help but note the stereotype of construction workers catcalling girls when, in this situation at least, they reacted with sheer silence to two nude women.
Harvey was excited to photograph Cincinnati’s oldest bar, Arnold’s Bar and Grill, and had connected with owner Ronda Androski in advance. She welcomed Harvey and all the naked folks that came with him.
He photographed Arnold’s façade at an angle, capturing the Shepard Fairey artwork on the side of the building. We hadn’t gotten many passersby in shots so far, so we waited for some clothed people to walk by. When they eventually did, Harvey gave the signal and the volunteers exited Arnold’s and dispersed nearby outside. One spectator jumped back in surprise, but the general reaction was simply laughter.
My final stop with Harvey and friends was definitely the most difficult shot of the day — the Contemporary Arts Center. In order to capture Metrobot and the east side of the CAC building, Harvey had to cross Walnut Street and take the photo from the other side of the road, in front of Nada. He climbed onto a trashcan to get a better view, balancing on the rim. This time, there was no indoor space where the models could wait and undress before the shot. They’d just need to strip right on the sidewalk near 21c Museum Hotel, walk to the corner of Sixth and Walnut, and then walk back and quickly get dressed. The 10-second rule would definitely be tested.
But first, we waited. I stayed with Harvey, nervously holding the teetering can, and we scanned the area for police and children (which we did not want in the shot) as well as pedestrians (which we did). A group would walk by, but then a bus would pull up and block the shot. Traffic might pass, but a mom with a stroller would appear. Then a fleet of bicycle cops. Then a truck. The hand signals we rehearsed were really important since Harvey was so far from the models.
The nervous-excitement Harvey had described earlier was in full force — even for me. I found myself bouncing on the balls of my feet, wishing for a group of adults to walk by. Even more surprisingly, I felt the desire to participate. While I didn’t quite understand the vague, scattered artistic reasoning behind the project, it certainly was, if nothing else, really fun to witness.
Finally, the stars aligned: no cops, no kids and a few passersby. Harvey gave the OK.
Yet again, the response was almost non-existent. The trio walking by stopped to take their own photo with the nudes and Metrobot behind them. One of the male models jumped in their shot, later saying the group thought this was some installation exhibit at the CAC. In seconds, the group was clothed again. Nothing more to see.
At one point that afternoon, Harvey asked if anyone knew of an area print shop that would not only work with nude photography, but be able to complete the prints before his exhibit at Frameshop the following night. Shooting, editing, printing and framing photos in a two-week span would be tight; he was trying to do this in a matter of hours.
But he was successful — not only did the prints make it to showtime, but many of the framed photos and posters sold, bringing in thousands of dollars.
The response has been so positive Harvey extended his stay in Cincinnati. But — surprise — he was not exactly sure how long.
“I might stay another week,” Harvey says. “I might move here [eventually]. I love it.”
Harvey’s long-term plans involve a documentary TV series tentatively titled Mission Skinpossible that he envisions as a making-of video component to the project, using footage from his Harvey cams. In the past he’s made greeting cards, calendars and even a book with his nude photos, but those are all expensive projects to take on.
For now he heads off to Boston, the next stop on his nudes in public tour. He hopes to model his time there after his Cincinnati experience, but, of course, doesn’t have a lot set up quite yet.
“I’m still winging it after 21 years,” he says.
See more of HARVEY DROUILLARD‘s Cincinnati nude series here. And more of his work on his website.
This article appears in Apr 22-28, 2015.