selected quotes

Foto Art Magazine“David’s work has graced the walls of numerous domestic galleries as well as spaces as far away as Amsterdam, Tokyo, Hamburg, Cologne, Paris and The Philippines. He is represented in many personal and institutional collections and has been commissioned or assigned by innumerable Fortune 500 companies. In addition, he has been the subject of many editorial features, including Zoom, Nikon World, Print Magazine, Communication Arts, Professional Photographer and Digital Photo Pro. Among his many awards and honors, he has been recognized as one of Nikon’s Legend Behind the Lens. His work is both bold and vivid, often incorporating elements of surrealism and humor. It is precise, intriguing, and quite distinct on many levels.”
Professional Photographers Magazine“David Mendelsohn’s work has a life of it’s own. It catches your eye, grabs your soul, and pulls you deep into its framework, so that ultimately you feel as if you’re part of the image. Mendelsohn’s acute sense of composition and his use of color and balance are what make his work so intriguing. Although the majority of work is primarily color, he also has a love for black and white. No matter what his approach to photography, Mendelsohn feeds his passion with heart and creativity. All things must be considered. Harmonies must be present.  It all should come together symphonically. If there is too much noise, it is difficult to hear the music.”
Zoom Magazine“Though the pictures are composed with a studied desire for simplicity, I found my eye darting about the images as though I were looking at a mediaeval illuminated manuscript, trying to better penetrate the veil of an arcane, intentionally mystified vision. Mendelsohn’s options create many variables in his pictorial vocabulary, but anyone who stops by his website (www.davidm.com) will quickly notice one unifying trait: the meticulous sensibility of an artist, whose well coordinated colors and forms cling to the two-dimensional surface in structures of great immediacy. Though the landscapes he creates from details of the human body might recall the more experimental figures of photographers like Bill Brandt or Edward Weston, Mendelsohn’s rendering of the figures themselves and their backgrounds provides the works with an unmistakably contemporary air by making them look totally futuristic.”
Digital Photo Pro“Choose one direction and you are taken into a world of desaturation: black and white and sepia tones dominate this collection of mostly human forms. Choose another and you’re greeted with the polar opposite: a bold color palette and striking compositions of the unusual and the everyday- all vivid in every sense of the word. Then you ask yourself: Could these two distinct bodies of work possibly come from the same photographer? Those disparate styles are what make David Mendelsohn such a great shooter. At the core of it all is this concept of creativity. If you didn’t know better, you might think Mendelsohn suffered from multiple personalities that compliment the highly varied areas of his work. What unifies Mendelsohn’s work is an obvious love for simplicity. Perhaps it’s a holdover from his previous career in graphic design. No matter what body of his work you’re viewing, it’s undoubtedly marked by his tendency toward reduction and, more often, subtle photographic abstraction. From headlights in his car to the highly evolved digital darkroom in his studio, Mendelsohn uses it all in the singular pursuit of artistic excellence. His playful personality still manages to sneak out on occasion.”
Nikon website/Capture Your World/Travel and Adventure“David Mendelsohn met up with his son, Christian, who drove down from Monterey, and the two embarked on a three-day road trip through the desert lands east of Los Angeles. When we heard about the road trip, we wanted to see the photos. You see, our familiarity with David’s work-be it commercial, advertising, editorial or fine art-led us to believe that the desert wouldn’t be the most fertile place for his photography. David deals in bright colors, bold graphics, unusual juxtapositions… all elegantly photographed. We didn’t think the desert would be…well, let’s say inspirational enough. Just shows how wrong you can be. The palette may have been different, even limited, but David brought his eye and his creativity to the territory.”
Digital Photo Pro/Master's Special Edition“David Mendelsohn’s work is a master’s composition of vivid color, finely proportioned space, surrealist sculpture and outlandish humor-plus everything in between. With an eye for color, simplicity and graphic composition, David has a unique ability to take plain, everyday objects and create something completely original and surrealistic. Working in abstractions, Mendelsohn takes complex and disparate elements and coaxes them into cohesive works of art. Human legs and pink Cadillacs and saturated skies juxtapose against each other in presentations that somehow end up inspiring a level of visual complexity that just shouldn’t be that deep.”
PC Photo“David Mendelsohn weaves a graphic sensibility, bold colors and a unique vision that show the breadth of his creativity in personal as well as commercial images. The next image seems to always be at the forefront of Mendelsohn’s thinking. He’s constantly working to build on past experiences to create something new. “I’m haunted with the question of whether or not I was able to build past this personal plateau. Did I create something more original than my last image? Did I manage to push a combination of perception and technique a little further than my last outing? The real question comes down to something quite private: Did I grow or did I simply imitate myself? It’s that factor, above everything, that creates my inertia and makes me either a little despondent or deliriously happy, depending on the answer.” When looking at his images spread on these pages, we think that David Mendelsohn spends a lot of time deliriously happy.”
Digitalis Foto/ Budapest“David’s work elevates his compositions of simple elements into the surreal. His images simply amaze. Mr. Mendelsohn can be rightly considered the master of minimalism. When asked about the “meaning” of some of his photographs he responded with the following. There are no artificial metaphors. These are simply photographs. Objects in space. I am however, always a little intrigued when somebody discovers unintended narratives or symbolism in any given image. Anything derived beyond what one observes on the paper relates directly to their personal history, their Gestalt if you will, and I am always curious to hear about that story. It’s enriching and I actually learn from listening.”
Shutterbug“I’ve never met David Mendelsohn but have visited his lushly designed website and so should you. Even at a glance shows a photographer in love with color and the talent and flare to exploit this passion by creating images that leap off the screen. The color in Mendelsohn’s photographs range from the understated to outrageous and over the top. Everywhere you point, click, or drag you’re surrounded by images that excite the mind and eye. They are mixed together with a soupcon of the dynamic imagination that pervades all of Mendelsohn’s photography.”
Nikon/1000 Words“The unique and unforgettable images created by David Mendelsohn defy classification into the usual categories of fine art, editorial, photojournalism, and commercial photography. The ultimate eclectic, he focuses his insightful attention and impressive talent on whatever it is that fascinates him—from an exquisitely moody landscape to an ordinary steam iron. His photographs run the gamut from surreal and playful to serenely classical, but all are imbued with his identifiable style, the unmistakable mark of a true artist. “Any art is a journey of self-discovery,” he declares, “and to discount anything is to deny the imagination. David Mendelsohn is clearly an extraordinary photographer.”
Digital Photo Pro/First Takes“It’s all about the color. David Mendelsohn’s otherworldly hues are the result of mastery over the techniques that enhance the color palette. Mendelsohn has a distinctive talent for seeing the extraordinary in ordinary objects. While digital technology didn’t start him on that path, it has made it possible for him to stretch his imagination.”
Communication Arts“David Mendelsohn lives in the New Hampshire woods, but his photography is global. Before you hit the pine-lined driveway that leads to photographer David Mendelsohn’s home, you pass a surprising amount of sheep, not to mention rolling hills, strawberry fields and dairy farms. It is an unlikely place to find a working commercial photographer, whose client list includes such formidable corporations as IBM, General Electric, Mercedes, Motorola, United Airlines, Xerox and Lockheed Martin. When he unlocks the studio doors, therein lies a very typical photographer’s space, one that would not be out of place in the middle of Manhattan. Obviously, David Mendelsohn has an interesting tale to tell—one that illustrates how “back to nature” values angled into a contemporary success story. It’s like visual haiku for me. When I shoot, I don’t want any unnecessary elements. I want to see something that’s crisp and visually arresting. In a commercial context, I have an obligation to tell the client’s story, but strive to do so in the simplest, most concise way.”
Nikon Introduction“David Mendelsohn has given new considerations to color through his careful use of post processing and digital manipulation. David travels worldwide, producing stunning images for design studios and advertising agencies. As a former designer, his work is characterized by a unique and highly graphic style. I like to impart my work with a certain grace, some order and balance. If you don’t prepare your canvas, the paint has nothing to adhere to.”
Digital Photo Pro/First Takes“With an eye for color and composition and an ability to create tension within the frame, David Mendelsohn’s work has become instantly recognizable. Mendelsohn is constantly in demand for commercial shoots because he brings an ideal combination of attention to detail and creativity to everything he does.”
The Body/The GEP/Netherlands/Feierabend Publishing“I fear redundancy. So I am compelled, and dragged into the future by my own work, despite the demons and angels that might await me there.”