Silver Eye promotes the power of contemporary photography as a fine art medium by creating original exhibitions, unique educational programing, and a space for artists to learn, create, and connect through our digital lab. 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.
Your support makes our exhibitions and programs possible
Plan your visit or schedule a tour
Fine art photography services, artist access, and workshops
Learn about Aaronel deRoy Gruber & Irving Gruber's legacy of creativity
Silver Eye is a proud founding member of Visual Arts Coalition for Equity
A year long, immersive internship for college junior and seniors
Silver Eye stewards PGH Photo Fair archive
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.
Interim Executive Director
leo@silvereye.org
Leo has been a dedicated member of our photographic community and a dear friend to the gallery. He has written extensively about photography and co-curated several exhibitions at Silver Eye, and was on the curatorial team of the first edition of Silver Eye’s Radial Survey. Leo holds a PhD in Anthropology from New York University and a Certificate in Culture & Media.
Deputy Director of Programs
helen@silvereye.org
Helen Trompeteler has over eighteen years of experience leading exhibitions and partnerships for internationally recognized art collections including the Royal Collection and the National Portrait Gallery, London. She has written extensively on photography for numerous books and art publications worldwide. Her curatorial practice is dedicated to supporting and sharing the work of underrepresented artists working with photography.
Deputy Director of Operations
jillian@silvereye.org
Jillian Daniels is a mixed-media artist, curator, and designer specializing in communication design. She holds a BS and BA from University at Buffalo and is a McNair Fellow whose research is grounded in historical narratives and design theory to better understand social, political, built, and cultural environments through visual and graphic storytelling.
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.
Silver Eye is extraordinarily grateful for the generosity of our supporters.
Our Many Individual Donors
Allegheny Regional Asset District
The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts
The AW Mellon Foundation
Bloomberg Philanthropies
FedEx Ground
The Heinz Endowments
The Henry John Simonds Foundation
The Hillman Foundation
The Irving and Aaronel deRoy Gruber Foundation
The Jack Buncher Foundation
Joy of Giving Something
The Laurel Foundation
The National Endowment for the Arts
The Opportunity Fund
The Pittsburgh Foundation
The William Talbott Hillman Foundation