In this episode of f/22, Zach Hodges sits down with Oakland photographers Pablo Circa and Essi Westerman at VSCO headquarters to talk about creating their very first gallery exhibition: Street Stories: Oakland in Focus.
What started as an idea during a lonely season turned into a community-powered show featuring 42 photographers and dozens of handwritten “written portraits” collected from people across Oakland. Pablo and Essi break down the full journey—from concept and open call to curation, printing, framing, and opening night overwhelm.
They share what it actually takes to make a group exhibition happen, how they narrowed 100+ submissions down to 42 images, and why they chose feeling over technical perfection. They also reflect on collaboration as “jazz,” building something rooted in love for their city, and creating space for Oakland to be seen beyond the headlines.
📌 This episode explores:
• How to create your first photography gallery show
• Turning a creative idea into a physical exhibition
• Curating 100+ submissions down to a cohesive body of work
• Pairing photographs with handwritten community stories
• Building connection through art and collaboration
Follow Pablo & Essi:
Pablo Circa
Website: https://www.pablocirca.com/
Essi Westerman
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/essiwesterman/
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Chapters:
00:00 Introducing Street Stories: Oakland in Focus
02:25 The Idea Behind Their First Gallery
05:10 From Injury to Photography
08:54 Building the Concept
12:11 “Follow the Feeling”
15:27 The Open Call & 100+ Submissions
18:02 Curating by Intuition, Not Technical Perfection
22:55 Adding Handwritten Community Stories
29:00 Opening Night in Oakland
34:05 Collaboration as Jazz
36:20 What They’d Do Differently
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Hashtags:
#PhotographyExhibition #GalleryShow #Oakland #StreetPhotography #PhotoCommunity #Curation #FirstExhibition #F22Series
