This September, world-renowned visual artist David Drebin—known for his cinematic photography, bestselling art books, and dreamlike depictions of beauty and longing—steps out from behind the lens and into the heart of New York City. For four Saturdays only, Drebin will offer spontaneous, unscripted one-on-one “readings” with strangers in Washington Square Park, as part of his daring new performance art project: Hidden Stars.
But these aren’t tarot cards or fortune-telling tricks. They’re emotional x-rays. Conversations that cut straight to the soul. A form of intuitive truth-telling that’s more about seeing than saying—about recognizing the hidden potential inside people who may have never felt truly seen.
No scripts. No cameras. No fees.
Just Drebin, a stage, a sign, and whoever feels brave enough to step forward.
“I’ve spent my whole career capturing the external,” Drebin says. “This is about exploring the internal. The unseen. The emotional. The part of us that’s hidden—but aching to be revealed.”
Each interaction is completely improvised. Sometimes it lasts two minutes. Sometimes twenty. Sometimes the person laughs. Sometimes they cry. Drebin never knows what will happen. That’s the point.
The project is equal parts performance, therapy, spectacle, and street magic. It sits at the intersection of conceptual art and human connection—a live exploration of vulnerability, ambition, heartbreak, and hope, staged not in a gallery but in one of New York’s most iconic public spaces.
And it’s not just about the person standing across from him. Hidden Stars is also Drebin’s boldest move yet as an artist. A man who has spent decades crafting images of fantasy now places himself in raw, unscripted reality—risking embarrassment, rejection, even indifference.
It’s brave. It’s unpredictable. And it’s pure New York.
Alongside the project, Drebin will also launch his newest book, I ❤️ New York—a stunning monograph, an ode to the city that has shaped so many, featuring his most powerful images of the metropolis that never stops inspiring. While the book captures the grandeur of the city’s skyline, Hidden Stars captures its soul.
This is not about going viral. It’s about going real.
Because sometimes, the most unforgettable work doesn’t hang on a wall.
It happens in an iconic park
In the middle of the city.
With a stranger who sees you.