In 2026, the Staunton Augusta Art Center celebrates 65 years of Art, Artists, and creative energy in our community.

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SAAC began humbly, with a group of local Art lovers coming together around a shared belief that Art belonged at the center of community life. From those early gatherings grew an organization that would become an enduring part of the cultural landscape of Staunton and Augusta County.

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Over the decades, SAAC has grown in ways those early founders could hardly have imagined. Art in the Park began modestly, with Artists displaying their work along a fence near the tennis courts at Gypsy Hill Park, and has since grown into one of the area's largest and longest-running Art festivals. Along the way, SAAC established its headquarters in the Pump House at Gypsy Hill Park before eventually finding its home in downtown Staunton at the R.R. Smith Center for History & Art.

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Today, SAAC presents exhibitions featuring Artists from across the region and country, provides Art education for children and adults, supports Artists through exhibitions and festivals, creates opportunities for public Art, and brings thousands of people together through programs and events throughout the year. From the gallery to the classroom, from the studio to the streets, SAAC continues to make Art a visible and vital part of life in our community.

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SAAC Through the Years is both a look back and a look forward, where we came from and where we are going. But this is not simply an exhibition about the past. It is a celebration of the creative people and creative energy that continue to define our area—and a reminder that SAAC's story is still being written. The same spirit that brought a small group of Art lovers together 65 years ago continues to inspire what we do today and what we imagine for the future.

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After 65 years, we are proud of where we have been, grateful for everyone who helped us get here, and excited about where Art can take us next.