Silver Eye promotes the power of contemporary photography as a fine art medium by creating original exhibitions, unique educational programming, and a space for artists to learn, create, and connect through our digital lab and education center, The Lab @ Silver Eye. Our programs are dedicated to supporting the work of emerging, mid-career, and under-recognized artists and sharing that work with our diverse audience in engaging and meaningful ways.
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Create | Learn | Connect
Learn about Aaronel deRoy Gruber & Irving Gruber's legacy of creativity
A year-long immersive internship for college seniors
Host your event at the Main Gallery or the Education Center!
Silver Eye stewards PGH Photo Fair. Visit the full archive here!
Learn more about Silver Eye's curatorial process and exhibition selection
Silver Eye is a proud founding member of Visual Arts Coalition for Equity
1/10: Silver Eye began in 1979 as two separate organizations: Blatent Image Gallery, a cooperative gallery designed to provide exhibition space to local fine art photographers, and The Silver Eye Photographic Workshop, which brought nationally known photographers to Pittsburgh to exhibit their work and to conduct workshops.
2/10: These two organizations merged in 1985 and became the Blatent Image/Silver Eye, which later changed to Silver Eye Center for Photography in 1985.
3/10: Gallery visitors admire Dylan Vitone's panorama in Pittsburgh Now in the summer of 2005.
4/10: William Wade, Dylan Vitone, Annie O'Niell, Steven Adams, Carrie Schneider, Rob Long, Lake Fong, Henry Simonds, Linda Benedict-Jones, Ken Keely and Heather Mull.
5/10: Students respond to photographs by James VanDerZee, 2000
6/10: Gallery visitors to Keith Carter "Poet of the Ordinary" in 2004
7/10: In 2017 Silver Eye began the New Vision Campaign to relocate our gallery from the South Side to Penn Avenue.
8/10: In the summer of 2017 our main gallery was named for the artist and philanthropist Aaronell DeRoy Gruber and her husband Irving Gruber.
9/10: Silver Eye's first opening reception after relocating for the exhibition "Past Present Future."
10/10: The June 2017 Grand Re-Opening Party for Silver Eye after the relocation to the Bloomfield-Garfield neighborhood.
Executive Director
leo@silvereye.org
Leo Hsu (he/him) is interested in the many ways that making and living with photographs shapes and is shaped by experience, and in how the photography's tensions and possibilities are simultaneously troubling and energizing. He has worked as a writer and editor for Fraction Magazine and Foto8 and as a news photographer. He taught in photography at Carnegie Mellon University and studied anthropology at New York University. He grew up in Pittsburgh, inspired by Silver Eye, and returned to the city after many years away.
Deputy Director and Director of Programs
helen@silvereye.org
Helen Trompeteler (she/her) brings more than twenty years of international experience developing artist-centered initiatives, shaping creative strategy, and cultivating cross-sector partnerships. At Silver Eye, her work centers on collaborative exhibitions and programs that advance new directions in contemporary art and photography, while fostering critical inquiry and honoring diverse lived experiences. Previously, she held senior roles at the Royal Collection Trust, UK, and the National Portrait Gallery, London. Helen is also co-founder of By/For: Photography & Democracy, a global initiative examining photography’s role in civic life.
Communications and Operations Manager
karen@silvereye.org
Karen Lue (she/her) is an image-based artist working primarily in analog photography and text. She is the recipient of the Fellowship 23 Keystone Honorable Mention Award through Silver Eye and has done residencies through Brew House Arts and Cornell’s Image Text MFA program. Karen holds a BA in History of Art & Architecture and Economics from the University of Pittsburgh and began her professional career with fellowships at the Andy Warhol Museum and Contemporary Craft. Since then, she has garnered over a decade of experience in project management, operations management, and community engagement at a variety of nonprofit and community-based institutions. Her work is rooted in building partnerships and collaborating with all stakeholders in order to create sustainable, meaningful practices and programs.
Education Program Manager
Sobia Ahmad is an interdisciplinary artist and educator working across photography, moving image, and social practice, exploring themes of spirituality, relationality, and embodied knowledge. She holds an MFA from Carnegie Mellon University, has exhibited widely, and is a recipient of the Silver Eye Fellowship 25 Keystone Award along with multiple grants and residencies. Ahmad brings over a decade of experience in curriculum design, community engagement, and program management. She has led courses and workshops in photography, art and mindfulness, and experimental media, emphasizing critical dialogue and engaging learning environments for participants of all experience levels.
Client Relations Specialist
cat@silvereye.org
Cat Burton is a Pittsburgh-based creative producer and arts administrator dedicated to expanding access to art and culture while building strong relationships and community. She is Creative Director of her agency, Create Art Together, and Creative Experiences Producer at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, building on her prior role as Creative Arts Manager. Her curatorial and directorial work spans exhibitions and programs including Opposites Abstract, How You Wear It, the Illuminate Fashion Show, and the Cadence Collection at Pittsburgh International Airport, reflecting her ongoing work on the Airport's Arts Advisory Committee since 2022. Cat brings her experience to Silver Eye to help strengthen relationships with existing and new clients and partners who may benefit from Silver Eye's resources and services.
Lab Manager
sean@silvereye.org
Sean Stewart is a photographer and artist with deep experience in digital printing, scanning, framing, and art handling. He holds a BFA from Drexel University and has shared his work at Silver Eye, VICE, and Juxtapose. Stewart’s work is quiet and contemplative, and his subject matter is centered around contemporary American issues.
Tim Gyves, Chair
Elizabeth A Carter, PhD, Treasurer
Anna Radder, Secretary
Matthew Conboy
Alison Oehler
Scott Roller
Shikeith
janera solomon
Barbara Weissberger
Jason Wilburn
Leo Hsu, Ex-Officio
Silver Eye is extraordinarily grateful for the generosity of our supporters.
Our Many Individual Donors
Allegheny Regional Asset District (ARAD)
Arts, Equity, & Education FundTM
Bloomberg Philanthropies
The Fine Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
The Herb Ritts Foundation
The Irving and Aaronel deRoy Gruber Foundation
Joy of Giving Something, Inc.
The Leonian Foundation
The McKinney Charitable Foundation
Opportunity Fund
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts
The Pittsburgh Foundation
and other foundations