Photo by Estill Robinson
Matthew Gibson has worked in various roles at the Singletary Center for the Arts, part of the University of Kentucky’s College of Fine Arts, since he joined the staff in 2014 as marketing and ticketing director. He served as director of operations during the 2020–21 season, was interim director the following year, and became director in 2022.
Gibson graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2003 with an economics degree. He worked as a financial adviser for a few years before a conversation with the Lexington Philharmonic’s marketing director — at the Singletary Center, of all places — helped inspire his foray into arts administration.
A career in finance “wasn’t something I saw myself doing for the long haul,” Gibson said. He re-enrolled at UK to study arts administration, earning his bachelor’s degree in 2012 and a master’s in 2019. During that time, he worked at WRFL, the university’s student-run radio station, serving as a DJ, program director, and general manager. He also helped organize the multi-day Boomslang festival from 2010 to 2013 — an experience that sparked his interest in event production.
“When I was doing Boomslang, I had no idea it would be the thing that galvanized my career direction,” Gibson said. “Looking back, I’m proud of what we accomplished and how it helped shape my trajectory.”
Just as the Singletary Center’s 2025–26 season is ramping up, BizLex spoke with Gibson to talk about his approach to running the venue, the biggest challenges he’s faced, profitability, and more.
Is your approach to running the Singletary Center different from those who held the director position before you?
As marketing and ticketing director, I sold former director Michael Grice’s shows here for six years. He’d often do a handful of large-scale shows — our whole season was maybe five or six events from September to May — and almost all of them were very ambitious.
This year we have 14 events in the season, and we’re using the smaller recital hall far more than in the past. We want to reach more niche audiences and bring in things that are a little less familiar to the Lexington community. I also curate a lot of jazz, avant-garde, and experimental music under the umbrella of our Expansive Sound Series, which pushes against the boundaries of what the Center has done in the past and what people can find here in town as a whole.
What else made you want to expand the Singletary Center’s programming?
Although I’ve scaled back some of the larger-scale shows, we still present concert hall programming and bigger events. The talent we can book at lower price points is remarkable, and the financial risk is less. That lets us take more chances and present a greater diversity of programming by booking artists who are under the mainstream radar or still emerging, creating distinctive, special experiences.
For all of its programming, is the Singletary Center profitable?
Since we’re considered an auxiliary unit to the College of Fine Arts, we are financially freestanding, meaning that we have to earn all the money that pays for our programming season along with paying our employees. We have about 60 student employees who are all paid from our revenues too. We receive a small amount of funding from the college, but by and large we must earn our own way.
What are some challenges in running the Singletary Center?
Operating within the university definitely has its pros and cons. There’s a certain amount of stability — all of my employees receive good benefit packages through UK — but it’s also hard to stay competitive in terms of compensation rates. I don’t get to determine what a job offer will look like; those decisions are centralized.
When it comes to attracting the most talented professional people, you have to emphasize workplace culture. I hate asking people to accept financial concessions to work in the arts because much of our value is intangible. When you try to translate that value into dollars, there can be a disconnect between monetary compensation and the emotional, experiential value presented through art. It’s something all employers face to some extent, but it’s more complicated in the arts.
Much of the center’s success is due to the tireless efforts of my staff. They’re a phenomenal group of arts professionals who have great skills and amazing dedication to their work. I come up with some unpredictable ideas for our programming season, and they consistently rise to the occasion.
What are your thoughts on the Singletary Center’s role in Lexington and Kentucky’s creative landscape?
We fill a unique role in Lexington’s arts ecosystem. Many local arts organizations want to host performances here or have been doing so for years. That’s been good for us financially, but it has equal intrinsic value in networking and in building our creative community. My hope is to keep it going. I want the center to be as vital and vibrant as possible, and it feels like we’re on a strong trajectory.