SECOND STREET GALLERY STAFF
Kristen Chiacchia, Executive Director & Chief Curator
Kristen Chiacchia joined Second Street Gallery as Executive Director in September 2016. Since taking on the additional role of Second Street Gallery’s Chief Curator in 2017, she has curated over 22 single artist exhibitions, 14 group shows, and has published five exhibition catalogues while also creating new programs and forging new partnerships for the gallery. As a guest lecturer at the University of Virginia and mentor to a number of UVA students, she has shared her experience with those aspiring to a career in the arts. Since relocating to Charlottesville, VA in September of 2016, Chiacchia has assumed an active role as a leader in the city's art community, while maintaining her connections to the art world in New York City and beyond.
Prior to joining Second Street Gallery, Chiacchia held the position of Director at Edward Tyler Nahem Fine Art in New York, where she organized exhibitions of work by Ed Ruscha, Joan Mitchell, Hew Locke, Andres Serrano, and Farideh Lashai. During her more than 13 years with ETNFA, she was instrumental in securing the gallery’s participation in a number of international art fairs including Art Basel fairs in Switzerland, Miami Beach, and Hong Kong, as well as ARCO Madrid and Abu Dhabi Art. As a New York City resident, she was a participating member of the Neue Galerie; the Apollo Circle at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Young Collectors Council at the Guggenheim Museum; and the Whitney Contemporaries at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Ms. Chiacchia received her BA in the History of Art & Architecture from the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her MA in Modern and Contemporary Art: Critical and Curatorial Studies at Columbia University. Additionally, she completed a Certificate in Appraisal Studies in Fine and Decorative Arts at New York University.
Meghan Smith, Associate Director
Meghan Smith came to Charlottesville from the Philadelphia area to study at the University of Virginia, where she graduated with distinction in 2018 as a double major in Global Development Studies and French with a minor in Studio Art. She has explored the many intersections of art and culture by volunteering at a public art nonprofit, co-curating exhibitions as a University of Virginia Museums Intern, designing an arts center with the Dakota Nation, and now promoting the best in contemporary art here at SSG. Meghan is a volunteer pARTner with the Justice Arts Coalition and a Strategic Planning Committee member at the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection.
Sri Kodakalla, Public Programs Coordinator
Sri Kodakalla is a mixed-media artist and writer based in Charlottesville, VA, currently exploring fiber art and printmaking. Kodakalla works and volunteers in several local arts organizations, focused on serving the creative growth of BIPOC artists and youth. She is the co-director of the Feminist Union of Charlottesville Creatives and is a renting member of McGuffey Art Center.
Madeleine Rhondeau-Rhodes, Graphic Designer
In addition to being Second Street Gallery's lead graphic designer, Maddie Rhondeau-Rhodes is a figurative-abstract painter with a studio at the McGuffey Art Center. Maddie graduated from the University of Mary Washington with dual degrees in Historic Preservation and Studio Art, with a minor in Urban Studies. To view her paintings, visit her website at mrhondeau.com, or follow her on instagram @merhondeau.