10 YEARS. $100,000.
THE NEXT CHAPTER.
Celebrating 10 Years of Kristen Chiacchia’s Leadership at Second Street Gallery
10 years. 10 months. $100,000.
In September 2016, Kristen Chiacchia arrived in Charlottesville to become Executive Director & Chief Curator of Second Street Gallery.
Ten years later, SSG is a stronger, more ambitious, and more artist-centered organization—one that remains deeply committed to the mission that has defined it since 1973: to enliven Virginia through access to the best in contemporary art and artists and to inspire new ways of thinking, seeing, and doing.
To celebrate Kristen’s tenth anniversary, we are setting an ambitious goal:
RAISE $100,000 IN 10 MONTHS IN HONOR OF 10 YEARS OF LEADERSHIP.
This is more than an anniversary campaign. It is an investment in what comes next.
TEN YEARS OF TRANSFORMATION
When Kristen joined Second Street Gallery in 2016, she brought nearly two decades of experience in the contemporary art world and a belief that a small nonprofit gallery could be both deeply connected to its community and ambitious in its artistic vision.
Over the past decade, SSG has expanded opportunities for emerging, mid-career, and established artists; strengthened its commitment to paying artists for their work and participation; created new professional development opportunities; increased free and accessible programming; developed new community partnerships; and continued to broaden the range of artists, perspectives, and ideas represented within the galleries.
Kristen has guided SSG through moments of extraordinary growth and extraordinary challenge—including the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic—while continuing to serve simultaneously as Executive Director and Chief Curator.
At the center of that work has remained one belief:
Artists matter. Contemporary art matters. And Charlottesville deserves a space where both are taken seriously
A DECADE OF IMPACT
Over the past ten years, Kristen has worked to expand the scope of Second Street Gallery’s exhibitions, strengthen support for artists, increase opportunities for community engagement, and build a gallery that is both locally rooted and nationally ambitious.
$325,000+ invested in exhibiting and supporting artists
$1,135,516.15+ in artwork sales facilitated through SSG
118+ exhibitions presented
1,724+ artists featured
[NUMBER]+ visitors welcomed through our doors
[NUMBER]+ free or low-cost public programs, including artist talks, workshops, performances, screenings, Family Studio Days, community events, and professional development opportunities for artists.
Through exhibitions, artist honoraria, artwork sales, professional development programs, Family Studio Days, community partnerships, and signature programs such as Teeny Tiny Trifecta, Second Street Gallery continues to create meaningful opportunities for artists and audiences alike.
WHY $100,000?
An anniversary is an opportunity to celebrate the past. It is also an opportunity to ask what comes next.
Over the next 10 months, we are asking our community to help raise $100,000 in honor of Kristen’s 10 years at Second Street Gallery.
These are not funds intended simply to commemorate an anniversary. They are an investment in the work Kristen has spent the past decade building—and in SSG’s ability to continue that work.
Funds raised through the campaign will help Second Street Gallery:
Present ambitious exhibitions by emerging, mid-career, and established contemporary artists.
Increase direct financial support for participating artists.
Keep exhibitions and the majority of SSG’s public programming free and accessible.
Support Family Studio Days and other opportunities for children and families to engage with contemporary art.
Expand artist talks, workshops, performances, screenings, and community engagement programs.
Strengthen professional development opportunities for working artists.
Support the staff and infrastructure necessary to produce a rigorous year-round exhibition and programming schedule.
Provide greater stability as SSG plans for its next decade.
Our goal is not simply to raise $100,000. It is to turn a milestone into momentum.
YOUR GIFT. YOUR IMPACT.
There is a place for everyone in this campaign.
A gift of $10 celebrates one dollar for every year of Kristen’s leadership.
A gift of $100 recognizes a decade of exhibitions and programs.
A gift of $1,000 makes a significant investment in the artists and programming that define SSG.
A gift of $10,000 can help transform what is possible for the Gallery in the years ahead.
And every gift in between moves us closer to our goal.
Whether you have attended an opening, purchased your first piece of original art through Teeny Tiny Trifecta, brought your family to a free program, participated in an exhibition, taken a workshop, supported an artist, served on the Board, volunteered, sponsored a program, or simply believe that contemporary art matters in Charlottesville, you are part of the story of these ten years.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
Second Street Gallery has been presenting contemporary art in Charlottesville since 1973. Institutions with that kind of history endure because each generation chooses to carry them forward.
Kristen’s tenth anniversary gives us a meaningful moment to recognize one remarkable chapter in that history—and to ensure that the next chapter can be even more ambitious.
Over the past decade, Kristen has helped transform SSG through her belief in artists, her curatorial vision, her commitment to accessibility, and her determination that Charlottesville deserves a contemporary art space that takes artists and audiences seriously.
Now, we invite you to celebrate that work by investing in its future.
10 years.
10 months.
$100,000.
One extraordinary next chapter for Second Street Gallery.
HELP US REACH $100,000
Make a gift today in honor of Kristen Chiacchia’s tenth anniversary as Executive Director & Chief Curator of Second Street Gallery and help build the foundation for SSG’s next decade.
Celebrate the decade. Invest in what comes next.