How do you choose 20 works of art to represent 20 years?

Last fall, Executive Director Damon McLeese took on that challenge as Access Gallery celebrated two decades in the Art District on Santa Fe.

For 20 Years in 20 Pieces of Artwork, an exhibit on the Community Art Wall November 21- February 7, 2025, Damon went back through Access Gallery’s history and selected 20 works for the Community Art Wall. Each captured a moment in the gallery’s story, but together they represented something larger: the artists, memories and relationships that have grown well beyond the gallery’s four walls.

The exhibition opened alongside Duet: The Works of Brittany Murdock and Allie Gestner. In the main gallery, two long-time Access Gallery artists shared the space for their first exhibition together. On the Community Art Wall, 20 works looked back at some of the people and moments that helped make an exhibition like Duet possible.

It was a fitting way to mark 20 years.

Because Access Gallery’s history isn’t simply a collection of dates, programs or exhibitions. You can see it in the art.

You can also see it in the relationships that continue long after a piece leaves the gallery.

Collectors return to see what an artist is making next. Artists develop their work over years. Someone who purchases a first piece comes back for another. And an artwork created at Access Gallery becomes part of someone’s home, office or collection.

This September, another Access Gallery tradition reaches that same 20-year milestone.

On September 18, 99 Pieces of Art celebrates its 20th year.

Damon created the event as an alternative to traditional fundraising auctions that could feel exclusive or place more emphasis on bidding than on the artists and their work. His idea was deliberately simple: give every artist the same 10-by-10-inch panel and price every finished piece at $99.

No bidding. No hierarchy of price.

Just 99 original works and the opportunity to discover one that speaks to you.

Access Gallery artists have remained central to 99 Pieces of Art throughout its history, sharing the gallery walls with artists from Denver and beyond. Many collectors return year after year, and a line often forms before the doors open as people wait for their first opportunity to choose from the 99 pieces.

“99 Pieces of Art has become one of those events where people don’t just come to buy artwork,” Damon says. “They come because they feel connected to the artists and to this community.”

Twenty years ago, Damon created an event designed to make collecting original artwork more welcoming and accessible.

Last fall, he chose 20 works to help tell the story of where Access Gallery has been.

This September, 99 new works will become part of what comes next.

20th Year of 99 Pieces of Art

Friday, September 18, 2026 | 6–9 p.m.

Access Gallery | 909 Santa Fe Drive, Denver

Tickets: $9.99