What Guests Say
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 'Bachus', 1596-1597
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"Stefen is a passionate and deeply knowledgeable guide and one who elicits lively discussion, even among people who might not know one another. I highly recommend going with him"
- Susan T. - Phinney Ridge
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"I had such a great time. It’s really rare I get to have an intelligent conversation about art and soaked it up…thank you so much. I’m very grateful"
- Kelsey C. - Seattle
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"Stefen was a guide of extraordinary insight and unusual grace in communicating his bottomless knowledge. Any question or challenge was met with gentle consideration and answered and expanded on, invariably illuminating far beyond the original scope. Highly recommended."
- Ivar H. - Jackson Heights
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"I'm not an "art" person, but your enthusiasm and curiosity were contagious, and your approach of art tapas, small deliberate doses really worked for me."
- Louis S. - Seattle
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"Seeing art with Stefen is like seeing it with a super smart, broadly knowledgeable friend."
- Hayden B. - Queen Anne
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"Being in a museum with Stefen is like venturing into a whole other world.
On our first visit Stefen limited us to three paintings focused on the Abstract Expressionists. In this restriction I felt a whole vastness revealed itself; slowing us down. No more grazing and skimming the surface. Stefen's depth of knowledge, not just of the paintings, but of the cultures and times, intellectual currents, as well as the mundanity of daily life of the artist and the subjects, powerfully brought the works into relief.
This was not a regular museum tour with the docent providing a rush of information. There was time for silence and discovery, notably, not just for us, but for Stefen as well. And this, I think, gets to the heart of his brilliance: he is there to learn and question and experience as much as we.
Our second visit, spending time at the Impressionist Exhibition, had a different tone. Slightly more paintings, and more history of the Prussian War, of the economics, of the cultural strata. But always at the fore, a compelling curiosity and almost rapture in the relationship.
Because that is what Stefen does so well, he creates an experience where you see art not merely as object, but so much more as an invitation to relationship. If I’m lucky. I will have the opportunity to take many more tours with him."
- Doug R. - Seward Park
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"It was truly a pleasure learning from you. The context you generously provide makes all the difference when appreciating paintings. What left me most in awe, though, was how contagious your love for art is. I feel better equipped now to start looking at paintings with a new set of eyes. Something like a wrong view of art shifted yesterday, and I'm very grateful for that.
You have a wonderful gift for awakening curiosity. I will definitely be recommending Stefen and SAM, and I hope to reach out in the future to arrange a group tour if we're lucky to find that you are available.
Thank you again for your generosity and for such a memorable experience!"
- Yannett C, Gig Harbor