Andrew Herman’s beard immediately makes him stand out among the throng of fans waiting to enter Citifield on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in June. The beard is the same brilliant orange found on all Mets merchandise and it perfectly suits this life-long Mets fan. Herm, as he is called by his friends and thousands of Instagram followers, is here for his 30th game of the season. The 36-year-old Queens native plans to attend every New York game of 2019, including the times they play at Yankee Stadium.
Artist Herm Herman is illustrating every Mets 2019 home game
Herm’s goal is grander than simple attendance, he’s not exactly a typical season pass holder. Each game he sits in the stands with a piece of paper, a brush pen, and draws the action that unfolds. He might take a break for some crinkle fries, but by the 5th inning, he moves on to watercolor. “I’m really good at drawing the back of people’s heads,” he laughs. Herm Herman is a freelance artist and illustrator and he’s illustrating every Mets home game live at Citifield.
“I was never good at sports,” says Herm, “But I always enjoyed following.” He recalls a winning grade school art project, a piece titled “Kitties of the World” that coincided with the 1994 World Cup, with the same pride and vivid memory that baseball players have for their first little league home run. A talent for drawing took him to the Fashion Institute for Technology where he earned his undergraduate degree.
Two Passions at Bat: Art and Baseball
He started combining two passions, art and baseball, by bringing his sketchbook to Mets games in 2014. In 2017 he made drawings of 75 Mets games, no small number, but achieving the complete set of every New York game is important to him. “My favorite part is the collection of it,” he says.
In this age of smartphone and tablet technology, where anyone can share an entire baseball season over their Instagram stories, Herm’s a charmingly old-school phenomenon, “a photographer without a camera.”
Drawing in the stands of Citifield
Herm enjoys his solo drawing, but he’d be thrilled if his project caught on with other Mets fans. Or perhaps even artists who wouldn’t claim much knowledge of sports. “You can draw at the Met, the statues don’t move,” but at a Mets game, the challenge is to capture the intricate details of fleeting moments. “My goal is to draw the moment. With people cheering…or people being upset.”
The Mets have not been having the best season and Herm explains how having the activity of drawing helps him through some painful losses. “I just love the Mets,” he says, “It builds a lot of character.”
For Herm Herman this baseball season, it’s not so much whether the Mets win or lose (though he would very much prefer they win), it’s how he draws the game.
I just happened to meet Herm at a Mets game early in the summer. I was interviewing people about their feelings about the Yankees… It became obvious very quickly, that his story was much more interesting!
Learn more about Herm!
I highly recommend following along with the project and Herm’s art on Instagram @hermherman. Don’t be afraid to send him a DM if you want to join him in the stands and draw the game too! I hope to do this before the seasons end…
Artist Herm Herman’s website is http://www.hermsterms.com. Visit to find more of his work and all his 2019 Mets game prints for sale!
