Eric Helgas Picture Day

November 17, 2024

Blade Study
17 Pike Street
New York, NY 10013

Everyone needs a headshot. Eric Helgas‘ ongoing project, Picture Day, addresses that need by taking quick, functional, seated portraits of walk-ins.The necessity for a well-lit, simple, and accurate portrait remains for the majority of participating members of society. Rarely printed, these digital images populate and humanize avatars across platforms, serving as proof of life on the other side of the screen. Helgas‘ Picture Day explores the paradox between the superficial and sincere. The desire to self-project and self-examine becomes apparent in a neutral setting. The institutional structure of the project allows for any member of the general public to have a photograph taken for $5.00 in front of a standard backdrop inside of the gallery. The first iteration was hosted at Blade Study on November 17th, 2024, from 11:00 AM — 5:00 PM. Future sessions will be announced through the gallery.

ERIC HELGAS (1990). Studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art, earning a BFA in Photography and Book Arts. Helgas‘ still life and portraiture photography explore desire, illusion, and artifice. Inspired by popular culture and its constructed realities, his specialty is creating meticulous staged and artificially lit images. His clients range from The Ace Hotel, New York Magazine, OnlyFans, and beyond.

Enquiries for private photography by Helgas can be arranged directly with the photographer by email: ehelgas@gmail.com