What we do.

2nd Story is a curatorial space for creative risk-taking, artistic collaboration, and innovative thinking within the visual arts. We empower artists to create new work that stretches the conceptual and formal boundaries of their practice, and we present exhibitions, talks, and educational programs that contribute to the cultural vitality of Lexington and beyond.

We are committed to a nimble organizational infrastructure that is responsive to artists who are exploring new ideas and evolving processes, and to a rigorous curatorial platform that situates artists' work within current and art historical dialogues.  

2nd Story also hosts a local chapter of Bridge Work, a professional development program that provides vital opportunities for emerging artists to implement disciplined work habits, present their work, develop audiences, and establish networks of support and mentorship. The program actively fosters a more interconnected arts community by linking to existing Bridge Work chapters operating in Milwaukee and Madison (Wisconsin) and Grand Rapids (Michigan).  

Who We Are.

  • Aanya Chugh is an Assistant Professor at the University of Kentucky College of Design and Principal of the architecture and interiors practice AÄ MÄ Studio based in downtown Lexington.

    She received her Master of Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and has served as a guest critic at institutions including RISD, Columbia GSAPP and Harvard GSD.

    While in New York, Aanya worked across a wide range of design practices, including the industry-defining Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the experience design firm Parc Office, and the coworking provider Industrious.

    Aanya serves as the Director of Inclusion at the College of Design and issues of belonging and identity are a common thread throughout her teaching and research. Having lived across various cities in the United States and India, she enjoys sharing her rich multicultural perspective with the University community and beyond.

  • Kurt Gohde is a Professor Sculpture, Photography, and Video Art at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky.

    He explores a wide range of approaches to making in his own work; from installation and social practice to photography and spoon carving.

    Kurt spends an inordinate amount of time telling folks about the Kentucky Meatrain of 1876 and planning an artwork which will cause it to rain meat again in the near future.

  • Stuart Horodner is director of the University of Kentucky Art Museum, a position he has held since 2014. He was previously artistic director of the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center; visual arts curator at the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art; director of the Bucknell University Art Gallery; and co-owner of the Horodner Romley Gallery. He has curated solo exhibitions with artists including Bethany Collins, Leon Golub, Wayne Koestenbaum, Simone Leigh, Melanie Manchot, Pope.L, Kay Rosen, Mira Schor, Joe Sola, and Jack Whitten, to name a few.

    Horodner's writing has appeared in numerous catalogs and periodicals including Art Issues, Art Lies, Art on Paper, Bomb, Dazed & Confused, Sculpture and Surface. His book, The Art Life: On Creativity and Career, was published in 2012, and addresses the philosophical and practical issues that affect artmaking and the marketplace. He has served in an advisory capacity to organizations including Artadia: The Fund for Art and Dialogue, Creative Capital, Hallie Ford Family Foundation and The MacDowell Colony. 

    Horodner received his BFA from The Cooper Union, New York, N.Y., and his MFA from the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.

  • Leah Kolb is the founder and director of 2nd Story. She also works as a consultant with Shore Art Advisory, whose clients include the Obama Presidential Center, the Fredriksen Family Collection at the National Museum in Norway, the Emerson Collective, and the Hall Group.

    As curator at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (2011–2022), Kolb developed exhibitions with artists including Faisal Abdu’Allah, Mel Chin, Amy Cutler, Natalie Frank, and Nathaniel Mary Quinn, among many others. She also oversaw several exhibition publications, and cataloged the complete editioned works for the print catalogue raisonnés of Frank Stella (2016) and Terry Winters (forthcoming).

    Prior to moving to Lexington in 2022, she was appointed to the Wisconsin Arts Board, where she chaired the accessibility committee (2020–22). And, In 2014, Kolb and artist Jason S. Yi co-founded Bridge Work, a mentoring program for emerging artists.

  • Anne Sabatino Hardy has adopted Lexington after growing up Midwestern in her hometown of Indianapolis (Go Colts!) and taking a few brief stints away in Oman and Morocco, as well as South Carolina. She lives with husband Jacob and two dogs, Kelbi and Gus.

    Professionally a generalist, she's worked frequently in marketing and business operations, often with a focus on tourism and hospitality, which aligns perfectly with her preferred leisure activities.

    Having spent hours and years in dance studios, show choir, theater classes and all manner of amateur productions, as well as traveling the world guided by curiosity, she believes art is an important pillar of community discussion, engagement and expression.