Testimonials
The Art of Photography Show is the very best photography competition among all of the competitions which were represented at the APA-LA panel, by far. You guys stand alone as being a pure high-end photography exhibition, produced with excellence and with integrity.
Jim McHugh
American Photographic Artists - Los Angeles, Vice Chair
Moderator of the APA-LA panel discussion 'Competitions That Count'
On behalf of APA/LA, I'd like to express my deep gratitude for your participation in our competitions panel. Your insight into how the Art of Photography Show is run gave it a lot of positive integrity and it was great to hear of a successful event being run so well. I wish you much success.
Anthony Nex
American Photographic Artists - Los Angeles, Chapter Chairman
I enjoyed my entire experience with The Art of Photography team. The submission processes is simple and un-glitchy. The feedback from Steven and the producers is generous and high-energy. The reception was extremely well attended, delicious food and drink, and interesting mixed company. The exhibition itself was curated artfully and installed cleanly and professionally. It was wonderful to have the Judge, Natasha Egan, speaking at the reception. Great time all around. Really good people to work with!
Sarah Small
Being part of the Art of Photography Show is a great experience to gain the attention of esteemed figures in the art scene, and have one's work evaluated both individually and contextually alongside other diverse photographers' work. To have my piece chosen and shown in the exhibition was a great addition to my CV and I would recommend other artists to take advantage of the opportunity to enter their work into the competition.
Natalie Dybisz, aka Miss Aniela
Hi Steven,
What an extraordinary Opening Event for the Art of Photography Show -- kudos to you and your fantastic team. I had a wonderful time, and was truly impressed with the selection of work. I know Jana, Deborah and Vivienne, along with a few other MOPA staff enjoyed the event very much -- thank you for making us so welcome! Everyone I spoke with could not say enough good things about the event overall.
AOPS is definitely recognized as a unique and significant presence to the photography and arts community here in San Diego (and beyond). I have to mention once again that your team is amazing; professional, friendly and helpful in every way! It makes sense that your event continues to drive more attendance each year, and strengthens our SD photo/arts family.
Best to you,
Sue George
Membership Manager
Museum of Photographic Arts
This is one of the best photography exhibits I've ever seen.
Kimberly Dotseth
Private photography dealer
Owner of Red Venus Gallery
Steven,
Saw the show on Thursday. Nicely done. LOVE the venue and a good selection of works. I love what you are doing and think it’s a wonderful contribution to the arts and especially photographic community.
Just wanted to say- Kudos. I did get a catalogue, so I'll spend time revisiting works through that.
Be well and talk soon,
Jennifer DeCarlo
Director
jdc Fine Art
Hi Steven,
I thought the venue was absolutely superb and it was fantastic to see the artwork shine in such an open and art-focused environment. I met Julian Cox a year or so ago during a trip to San Francisco. He definitely seems a wonderful choice for curator/judge of the show.
KUDOS for another fantastic show. I know you put your heart and soul into it every year.
Jana Holsenback
Manager of Institutional Giving
Museum of Photographic Arts
Steven,
You and your staff did a great job with this show. This was my favorite Art of Photography Show for many reasons. The new venue was a great improvement and such a compliment to what the museum is trying to do. I'm glad that the powers at work were able to see how it was a win/win situation. And Lisa's work in hanging the show was freaky good!
You totally scored getting Julian Cox. He is by far the hippest curator you have had. I love how he came to this show with a strong appreciation of abstraction and painting instead of seeing photography as a medium apart from other fine art. For years I have been frustrated going to photography exhibitions where most of the work was "straight" photography, as though we were not in the middle of a digital and world wide cultural revolution. When times are profoundly uncertain, people need to express themselves in unconventional ways. And it was heartening to see him begin his lecture comparing photograph to painting, with the purpose of showing how a photographer working with only split seconds could stand strong next to an iconic neo-classical work that had been carefully planned and executed over months.
I love this show. Thank you everyone for such a treat.
Kris Moore
Hi Steven,
Many thanks for a tremendous show that was beautifully organized. It was a privilege to meet so many wonderfully talented photographers from around the globe. And, a very large thanks to Julian Cox for his skill, insights and passion.
Cheers!
Frederick Sharpe
Hello Steven,
I'm just back from San Diego and feel compelled to write a note to you and Lisa about the show. I was astounded by the quality of work, the way the work was displayed, and how you orchestrated the entire show. Julian Cox spoke eloquently on the subject of photography and was certainly an inspiration to everyone in the room. Thank you for a very professional event, which I feel honored to have been a part of it.
Suzi Moore McGregor
Dear Steven,
Greetings from Istanbul! I am back home now and I would like to thank you and your team for the wonderful organisation. It was a big pleasure for me to have participated in the opening reception and to have been with such talented photographers. I will definitely submit pictures for next year's show and hope to be with you in San Diego again.
Best regards,
Umit Okan
Hi Steven,
I’m so glad I came out. What you have created with AOPS is so impressive and, as you said, I look forward to chatting about future possibilities.
Congratulations!
Carrie McCarthy
Marketing Director
Santa Fe Photographic Workshops
Dear Steven,
The catalogues you sent me arrived through the post this evening. Wow! It's a stunningly beautiful publication. Many many thanks, not just for this, but for the help and support you have provided throughout the process which, for exhibitors like me has been a life line. 200 artists have had their hearts lifted by the Art of Photography Show, and I am near the top of that list.
The whole experience has kick-started my confidence and self belief, and I currently have a one man show running as part of the Brighton Photo Fringe, as well as a range of other group shows and inclusion in publications all over the place. The catalogue is giving me a chance to delve into the statements and motivations of fellow exhibitors.
Should you get the chance to thank Julian Cox for one selection in particular, I'd be grateful. In the meantime, many thanks again.
Kind regards
Tony Bowen
Hi Steven,
Thanks for your generosity in allowing me to bring two of my photography classes to the Art of Photography Show, as well as providing catalogs to everyone. The show was great, as always, with an amazing assortment of images. I really like the new venue at the San Diego Art Institute and appreciate all the work and effort you and your staff have done to make this show so good.
Best regards,
Ian Cummings
Graphic Design Faculty
Cuyamaca College
Hi, Steven and Lisa,
Thanks again for inviting me and Carla Richmond to speak. It was such a wonderful experience. I don't often get a chance to do a "show and tell," and this was particularly meaningful for me, because it's only in recent years that I've become very clear on my "philosophy of portraiture" and it was great to be able to share the specifics of that with a receptive audience.
It was also terrific to have Carla there to show a completely different kind of portraiture with strangers, really balanced the show, and it was great to see that the audience responded to both types. You provided such a great environment, and you two always present yourself -- and everything you do -- with such warmth, grace and class. I want you to know that Jane and I really appreciate you.
Our best to you,
Dick Sanders
Hi Steven
The Art of Photography show is a world class act. You have got it just right. Bravo!
Regards,
Harry De Zitter
Dear Steven and Lisa,
I just wanted to give the both of you a quick shout out. This show has taken my life and career to another life. Both of your support was a blessing. Thank you to the both of you for your time and effort!
Thanks again,
Franz Criego
Dear Steven & Lisa,
Thanks a million for inviting me to jury the 2012 Art of Photography Show. It was a wonderful experience, in every way. The show turned out really well, thanks to all your attention to the details and your tremendous hard work...and a great vision. Congrats and thank you.
Warm wishes,
Julian Cox
Founding Curator of Photography and Chief Curator
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
Hi Steven,
Thank you for a wonderful show. I have learned a lot in the last few days and made some great new photo friends! The lecture by Julian Cox was very helpful. Thanks again for all that you do!
Christina Renee Rodriguez
Steven,
Congratulations on a very successful event. A wonderfully diverse exhibition and your placement of works was fabulous.
Wishing you continued success,
Naomi Nussbaum
Steven,
Thanks for a great event! The exhibition looked super. The turn out was amazing. Julian's generosity in communication both during the evening of the opening and during his talk was fantastic. A big thank you to all three of you, as well as the myriad of others, who helped make your event possible.
All the best,
Jamey Stillings
Dear Julian, Steven and Lisa,
I'm back in Paris. I just wanted to tell you how fortunate I felt to be a part of the show. It was such a pleasure to meet all the other artists from around the world.
I look forward to the day our paths cross again. Thank you again for all the work you put in to make the show possible.
Sincerely,
Irène Billard
Thank you so much for the invitation to your reception. The art was absolutely fantastic. What's more, I think I should go out and buy a camera, as my love for photography was renewed! I wish you much success. Your hard work and dedication was truly reflected through the show.
Rhonda Brown
Public Relations Manager
Bloomingdale's Fashion Valley, San Diego
Having fallen in love with an American girl on a road trip through California, I decided shortly after to move half way across the world to Venice Beach. I had won a number of awards back in England and knew how they could open any number of doors at advertising agencies as well as galleries. Now in a new country I figured that I probably had to compete over here in order for people to recognize the award - which is when I heard about the Art of Photography Show. I picked a few of my favorite images and entered them into the competition. Soon after the deadline had passed, I received an email: Natasha Egan - the judge for the 2010 event - liked my photographs and had decided to include one of them in the exhibition: 111 images were selected from over 13,000 entries. I was amazed by the publicity that was generated - a huge number of websites, magazines and papers wrote about the show and the gallery was filled on opening night. It was a great experience, thanks to Steven Churchill and his team. I will surely enter the competition again.
Jens Lucking
I wish to thank you for the opening of the Show last evening. I met
interesting people (viewers) and great connections with other artists, as well as viewing
their work. This was an opportunity for interaction with people interested in my work,
from San Diego and around the world. I hope you are able to relax a bit -- it took a lot
of work and organization to put this show together. Thank you again for all of your help
and time.
John Tamashiro
I just wanted to mention that the website interface for your competition is by far the most sophisticated, elegant, easy to use and functional operation of its kind I have EVER used. The whole thing worked exquisitely. And I have gone through that process recently with quite a few galleries and exhibitions (web based and prehistoric paper-age based). Most of them are frustrating in their primitive structure or performance problems or both! You have set a very high standard here and everyone involved on every level of the design, engineering and maintenance of the artists' interface should be patted on the back! I really mean it. Thanks from all of us artists out there in cyberspace and the world.
Dane A. Davis
Steven,
I was talking with another artist here in Tucson and we agreed that you are doing a great thing by marketing your show so well....major kudos to you. Here in Tucson and in other places, the contemporary art community sometimes forgets that artists want to be financially and critically successful,....that most of us have other work that supports the art work, that we want to sell our wares. You haven't forgotten this, and I and others really appreciate it.
Stu Jenks
Thanks so much for all the effort you must have put in to this. Not living in San Diego, I had no idea until the opening how big a deal this show is. I was really impressed with everything about the show and the opening, and I am very
grateful to be in it. A number of my friends came to the opening, including a whole bunch
from Los Angeles, some from the La Jolla Indian reservation in Pauma Valley, and even one
from Minneapolis. Every one of them had a great time.
The catalog is awesome!
Last but not least, I worked with Tim at LACMA for a few years when he first started
there, and I was afraid that I had gotten in to the show because he remembered my name. I
was greatly relieved to find out from him on Saturday that he did not know my name when he
selected my photo, so I'm an all-around happy camper right now.
Thanks again.
Tom Sacco
You guys did a great job of organizing and promoting the Opening Reception. The Show drew
the right audience. Everyone seemed to linger and enjoy the art, the event, and personal
interaction. Your team was very professional, the art well displayed, and I'm proud to
have been selected to contribute images to this event.
Regards,
Kurt Lightfoot
Steven, thank you! It was a spectacular weekend, and I am grateful to have been part of
it! The catalogue was particularly beautiful! What an honor.
Best,
Juliet Davis
Thanks for putting on such a spectacular show! My wife and I had a really good time and I
will definitely submit some work next year.
Regards,
Don Relyea
I want to once again thank you and your staff for putting on a great show. I truly enjoyed
the event and diversity of art and international scope.
Lollie
Thank you for all your hospitality while I was in San Diego. The show was beautifully
installed and I was pleased to meet the other artists. Thanks again for
everything,
Sheila Elias
I am glad the reception was a smashing success and that the show received well deserved
positive press coverage. Bravo!!! There is some truly amazing work on display.
Best Wishes,
Tanya
I entered four photos into your show. By the way, your entry process was
amazingly easy. I must commend you. The website was clear, the upload
and PayPal thing was easy, just very nice.
Noa Massari
I just wanted to take a moment and say thank you. You have put together a wonderful show
and I am honored to be a part of it. Tremendous job, I look forward to next year.
Richard
Congratulations on retaining Neal Benezra as your judge - a testament to the high quality of your show! Wish you the very best!!
Kind regards,
Yolanda
Every aspect of your exhibition is extremely well done and professionally handled. The show is fabulous, the whole thing is incredible!
Lonnie
These glorious images made me just weep the sort of tears I have no former memory
of. Thank you for sharing them. I wish you much continued success. Best wishes to
you always!
From sunny Texas,
Molly
I wanted to thank you for putting together a WONDERFUL event earlier this evening. I am
just amazed at all you, Lisa and those who have helped you have accomplished in just a few
short years. It has been a joy to watch this develop and I am impressed at your talent and
foresight---and the ability to host what must be a stressful event while remaining calm
and personable. There were so many interesting and genuinely nice folks at the reception,
as well. I'm so glad I was in town and able to attend. I was able to talk with at least a
dozen of the artists, and so enjoyed the conversations. I heard so many positive comments
about the show and the evening. Good job!!
Best to you, Lisa and the rest of the staff--
Vicki Hesterman
Thanks to all of you for such a great event and for including "Uncle Tom's Condi Rice" in the exhibition. It's a risky venture hanging overtly political work. Even riskier to have such a piece hang, well, so blatantly in the public face. Thanks!
It must be said that San Diego is a very sweet city with a people just as sweet. (Very unlike Los Angeles where we are just way too silly about our "cool factor"). I hope I wasn't too much of a bull in a china shop and that my political irreverence and passion didn't offend too many. It was a grand night. The staff, the food, the drinks, the service were all outstanding.
I am still in awe of the breadth of talent in the show and how you all managed to pull off a great event. I've organized festivals and openings over the years and you all did a fantastic job. Kudos.
Please keep me in the loop of other Show happenings. Again, many thanks.
Terri Lloyd
It was awesome!!!! Keep up the good work!
Warmest Regards,
Christina
What a great show you and the other folks put on. My parents and myself really enjoyed
ourselves. Thank everybody for me please. This was a very important time in my life to
have my work selected for your show. I am looking forward to next year.
I thank everybody very very much again.
Peter Slevcove
I thought your show was a huge success....you did a great job organizing it and bringing
in some amazing artists.
Cheers,
Reydeen Brooks
The event last night was terrific, and the exhibition very impressive! I'm honored to be a
part of it!
Also, I think the catalog is beautiful! The reproduction of the images came out so well,
and it was designed in a very user friendly yet elegant way. Congratulations!
Thanks for all of your hard work.
Best regards,
Marissa Roth
Success, Mr. Churchill! The Gala was wonderful last night. Having been involved with
event planning myself, I must say everything was beyond amazing. Everyone involved
definitely deserves commendation on their efforts. Everyone was extremely welcoming and
the atmosphere of beautiful people added to the lovely ambiance. I wish you much success
in the future and would like to express my gratitude again for keeping our Westin San Diego hotel guests in
mind.
Take care,
Karen Guerra
Concierge
Westin San Diego Hotel
Just wanted to congratulate you on such a fantastic show! The images were so inspiring!!
Best,
Jamie
Steven, great show; really wonderful!
Best,
Alexis
I just wanted to congratulate you on the success of all your hard work in putting together
yet another wonderful exhibition. Your creative efforts in putting this together every
year is clearly making a serious mark in the art world and provides so many opportunities
and connections for photographers and buyers/art lovers - it's so nice to see an artist's
energies so visionary beyond himself and having the prestige and respect that comes along
with the success of all that hard work - so well-deserved.
By the looks of the reception and the worldwide response to this now, you have really
created something special!
Take care,
Huda Gontkon
Wow! The opening was fantastic! I heard from so many of my friends that is was a great
show and event.
Jessica
You're a hit!! Way to go! Everyone was impressed with the show and the reception. I
thought it was a wonderful event! Thanks for everything!
Sheri Berlanga
Downtown San Diego Partnership
You and your crew pulled off one magnificent event. Kudos to you all!
Nanette Martin
Hi Steve. Congratulations again on the exhibit and your organizational skills. You are making the photo art community more visible and exciting in San Diego.
Cheers,
Pasha Turley
Kudos on the great media coverage and on the wonderful turnout for the opening reception. I'll make my way down to the Lyceum this week to check out the show. Can't wait!
Cheers,
Jackie
I am delighted that the show was a success. It is a shame that I am sitting here in Belgium and couldn't attend. However, my parents and some friends attended, and said it was an absolutely wonderful event, not only the images, but the catered hors' dourves, the catalog and the whole atmosphere. They were very impressed. The success of the exhibition has inspired me to continue creating new work, and I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to have participated. You have done a remarkable job in organizing this event.
Greetings,
Dayle Ann Clavin
Congratulations to you for pulling off a FULL HOUSE attendance for the Gala Reception last
Saturday evening at the Lyceum Theater Gallery. The
display of art was beautifully presented. Thank you for choosing a spot for
Richard's "MegaZin" that was well lit and at eye level. With so many
participating artists' works, I can appreciate the show occupying as much of the wall
space at the gallery as possible. There was art everywhere. The printing format of the
gallery title cards (identifying the artwork, artist name and pricing) was very well
done... very classy. Compliments also to you for acquiring strong sponsorships for the
show. Firstly, the Catalog is gorgeous. Secondly, the 2nd Place Winner
"Self-Illumination" was a charming image. Terrific. The awards
distributed at the end of the evening were very elegant. You covered all the bases on
aesthetics Steven, and the caterers supplying the hors d'oeuvres were top-notch. The event
was really fun and a huge success!
Raulette Woods
Thank you for the invitation to submit my work for your consideration. I am appreciative of the exposure no matter what the outcome. Please keep my contact info on your list as I would be delighted to be invited to submit my work for the gallery show next year. Thanks again for inviting me and I wish you and the project smashing success! Thanks for putting on such an artist friendly show.
Anna
I just got the catalog from the show today and I wanted let you know that it might be the nicest catalog I have every been included in, not to mention that this is the first I've been able to see the entire exhibit, and the work is just beautiful. I'm am so honored to have been a part of this show! Thank you so much.
Sincerely,
Polly Chandler