SITE 30th Anniversary

SITE Galleries (formerly known as Student Union Galleries) will be celebrating its 30th anniversary throughout the 2024–25 school year. SITE’s constant driving force has been the professional development of student-led exhibitions of student artwork. Since its inception, SITE’s various gallery spaces have hosted more than 300 exhibitions featuring the work of more than 600 SAIC student artists, curators, and administrators. The galleries have been a crucial professional training ground for endless professionals who have served in various paid positions including directors, gallery assistants, archivists, and more. These positions are guided through various staff advisors and faculty members to assist in navigating the complexities of “learning by doing,” which is a hallmark of the program.

To mark this heritage and momentous occasion celebrating student-led exhibitions and student art, SITE will host a series of key events including panels, a fair, a collaborative exhibition with Northwestern University’s Dittmar Memorial Gallery, and a 30th anniversary publication.

 The 30th anniversary is supported by BLICK Art Materials.

Programming

SAIC Giving Day

March 12

 

This year SITE Galleries will take part in SAIC’s Annual Giving Day. The student-led SITE Galleries (formerly known as Student Union Galleries) within SAIC’s Department of Exhibitions and Exhibition Studies is celebrating its 30th anniversary and provides students of all disciplines opportunities to professionally develop their practices through first hand experience—solo exhibitions, group exhibitions, curatorial projects, and programming events.

This Giving Day, your support will empower us to continue the necessary development for students by bolstering our professional development programs for our student artists, curators, and administrators. 

Click here to support SITE/SUGs Gallery.

 

Open Archive Sessions

February 24, 4:00–6:00 p.m.

SITE Sharp Gallery

March 17, 4:00–6:00 p.m.

SITE 280 Gallery

May 2, 6:00-8:00 p.m.

SITE Sharp Gallery

 

In celebration of the 30th Anniversary our archive team is opening up our archive to the SAIC community in three sessions.

Spanning materials from 1994-2024 going decade by decade, this will be an informal hands on interaction with our archive which includes slides, posters, and more! You’ll even see familiar names of current professors who were apart of exhibitions as students. Come by and learn more about archives! Our archive team will be there and available for questions.

Cross-Institutional Exhibition

 

In spring 2025, SITE Galleries is collaborating with Northwestern University’s Dittmar Memorial Gallery on a cross-institutional exhibition. This exhibition will celebrate student artwork and student-led exhibitions at both the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Northwestern University. 

Chicago Artist-Run Spaces Fair

September 25, 3:00–5:00 p.m.

SAIC Ballroom, 112 S. Michigan Ave.

 

Kicking off the 30th Anniversary is the Chicago Artist-Run Spaces Fair in collaboration with Career and Professional Experience (CAPX). For this event, we invited artist-run spaces throughout Chicago to join us in celebrating their histories, programs, and exhibitions, while exposing our students to the range of opportunities in the Chicago art world. Attendees will include the Hyde Park Art Center, Riverside Art Center, Terrain Biennial, and more. Register via Handshake.

Upcoming Publication

SITE Galleries: 30 Years of Student-Led Art, Exhibitions, & Archives

The collaborative exhibition will coincide with the physical and digital release of the book SITE Galleries: 30 Years of Student-Led Art, Exhibitions, & Archives. This book details information about the history of SITE galleries, connecting it to greater conversations in the art world. Contributors include Director of the 30th Anniversary Matthew Cortez (BA 2025), scholar Michelle Davó Ortiz (Dual MA 2024), Senior Lecturer Michael X. Ryan, and Executive Director of Exhibitions and Senior Lecturer Trevor Martin (MFA 1998). Special essay authors include Professor Michelle Grabner, curator Allison Glenn (Dual MA 2012), critic Stephanie Cristello (BFA 2013), curator and archivist Mariana Mejía (MA 2022), and artist Joseph Josué Mora (BFA 2018).