Harry’s Gift

About

Harry Shunk, a once internationally known photographer, had become a reclusive hoarder, rarely leaving his apartment in the West Village in New York City. The day came when a terrible odor alerted a security guard. It took three sweeps by the police to discover Shunk’s body trapped upside down in piles of papers seven feet high.

Six days and seven dumpsters were needed to finish the job. On the last day, Darryl had a hunch, and backing up his truck to the site, he took some of the boxes and portfolios, brought them home and put them in his closet.

There they stayed, until one night, depressed and overwhelmed by hard times, Darryl saw something. A shadow passed down the hall and vanished into the closet. When Darryl opened the closet door, he looked up at a photograph of a swath of orange fabric that spanned the entire width of a canyon. Thinking it might be valuable, the next day he brought it and some of the other art to show the building manager who had hired him. “Are you ready to retire?” he was asked.

Shunk left no heirs and Darryl Kelly was hired to get rid of the stuff.

Featuring

Christo
Niki de Saint Phalle
Yves Klein
Harry Shunk

Official Selections

Manchester Film Festival
New York Documentary Film Festival
SENE Festival Audience Award
Real Art Festival Best Documentary