Create and connect through an interactive Bank of America Art Lab installation by Boston-based artist Yenny Hernandez. Experience her stunning mural depicting gratitude in bloom, showing how appreciation can grow within each of us. Reflect on the gratitude in your life through hands-on art-making and more!  

Make a vessel 
Let gratitude bloom! Use colorful paper, decorative tape, sculptural elements, paint pens, and more to create a 3D vessel as a portrait of gratitude.  

Gratitude exchange 
Carry your appreciation forward! Choose a colorful prompt card to write or draw your own response and add to our community display. 

Token of thanks 
Receive a sticker designed by the artist as a token of appreciation for your participation. As supplies last, one per visitor. 

About the Artist

Yenny Hernandez (she/her) is a muralist and graphic designer who uses vibrant color and storytelling to transform public spaces. Her work spans bold lettering, narrative imagery, and abstract compositions, with the goal of creating immersive environments that spark joy and connection. By blending design expertise with community voices, she reimagines blank walls as dynamic spaces that invite people to feel inspired and included. 

Free Admission for Youth

Youth 18 and under always receive FREE museum admission. The ICA is committed to providing access to the art and artists of our time—and we do this with the incredible support of our community. Explore the +1 Membership: a free ICA membership program for youth 0-18.

Questions? Reach out to us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.

Get inspired by Caroline Monnet’s Man-made Land! View the Art Wall installation and feel a sample of the materials Monnet uses at our art cart. Use colorful metallic paper, ribbon, decorative tape, and colored pencils to draw and collage a mobile that represents the connections in your life! Plus, warm up with a hot beverage at a pop-up hot chocolate bar with all the fixings!* 

Art-making is free and meets at the Sandra and Gerald Fineberg Art Wall in the State Street Corporation Lobby. Participation is drop-in on a first-come, first-served basis as space allows. *Available for purchase.

College students are taking over the ICA! Head to the Seaport for a night of creative art-making, unbeatable music, and stunning harbor views. Explore cutting-edge exhibitions—including the brand-new An Indigenous Present and the 2025 James and Audrey Foster Prize, celebrating Boston artists—and make the museum yours for the night.

Music lineup

State Street Corporation Lobby, First Floor

Your Biggest Hater | 6–6:45 PM
An ever-evolving experimental jazz project by trumpeter Lemuel Marc, Your Biggest Hater features Eazy Freeman-Fanfan on percussion, Jillian Upshaw on drum set, and Aidan Devine on bass.

Command+E | 6:45–7:10 PM
Command+E blends improvised sound and visual performance using sculpture, saxophone, broken electronics, sampling, and effects.

Teatea  | 7:10–7:35 PM
Boston area performer and producer Teatea fuses R&B, hip-hop, synthpop, and other eclectic styles into her music.

Pleasure Coffin | 7:35–7:45 PM
Multimedia performance artist/producer Pleasure Coffin’s sculptures of sound accompany her noise-pop music.

Lilith | 7:45–9 PM
Eclectic electronic musician Lilith performs with an array of gadgets ranging from the SP404, Monome, and DJ Decks, to create footwork-R&B melodies.

Event program

Art-making: Land Shapers | 6–8 PM  
Bank of America Art Lab, First Floor

Make art inspired by local artist Robert Peters’ Art Lab installation, Big Baby: A Story of Maushop. Be a land shaper like Maushop, a legendary giant from Wampanoag tradition who shaped and protected the land. Use clay and other sculptural materials to create your own meaningful place or bring something from your imagination to life. Free / Drop-in, first-come-first-served, and space is limited.

An Indigenous Present Gallery Discussions | 7:15 + 8:15 PM  
Bridgitt and Bruce Evans and Karen and Brian Conway Galleries, Fourth Floor

Deepen your understanding of the exhibition themes found in An Indigenous Present through a spotlight discussion of Teresa Baker’s Knife River. Each session is approximately 20 minutes long.

Win an ICA Labubu!
State Street Corporation Lobby, First Floor

Enter to win one of three Labubus complete with custom ICA gear! Sign up for the raffle when you check in. Winners will be notified via email following the event.

Levain Bakery Cookies
State Street Corporation Lobby, First Floor

Sample a fresh, delicious cookie bite from Levain Bakery, handmade with love and the best ingredients for ICA College Night. First-come-first-served while supplies last

University Members: Reserve your free ticket below!

Show valid student ID when checking in!

Berklee College of Music

Brown University 

Boston College: Art Department 

Boston University 

Brandeis: School of Creative Arts 

Bunker Hill Community College 

Emerson College 

Framingham State University: Arts & Ideas 

Harvard University 

Lesley University 

Massachusetts College of Art and Design  

Massachusetts Institute of Technology  

Montserrat College of Art  

Northeastern University & NU College of Arts, Media and Design  

Olin College of Engineering  

Roxbury Community College  

School of the Museum of Fine Arts  

Suffolk University Art & Design and First Year Seminar 

UMass Boston: Art Department  

UMass Dartmouth: College of Visual and Performing Arts & Honors College 

UMass Lowell: Art and Design Department  

Urban College of Boston  

Step into the world of Big Baby by artist Robert Peters —a reimagination of the Wampanoag legend of Maushop, a giant who is said to have shaped the areas now known as Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Martha’s Vineyard. In Peters’ art and story, Maushop is born as a giant baby raised by the community he grows to protect.  

Make art in the Bank of America Art Lab inspired by the way Maushop shapes and protects the land. Use clay and other sculptural materials to be a landshaper, and create a personally meaningful place or bring something from your imagination to life. How would you protect and care for this place? How does it provide for you, and how will you give back to it? 

About the Artist

Robert Peters is a Mashpee Wampanoag artist, poet, and author. His expansive work — from children’s literature and poetic essays to paintings and community murals — promotes understanding and healing among Indigenous people.

His first published book, Da Goodie Monsta (2009), was inspired by a dream his son had as a young child and tells the story of a monster who chases away nightmares. Peters released Thirteen Moons Calendar: A Meditation on Indigenous Life (2015 and 2020) featuring poetry, essays, and thoughts written over 20 years. His most recent self-published work, Big Baby (2024), tells a reimagined story of Wampanoag legendary giant Maushop as a baby.

Peters’ public art can be found in community spaces on Sachem Street in Revere, MA; in dormitories at the University of Massachusetts Boston; and in a mobile collaboration with three other Native artists honoring Native Boston Marathon runners. Peters continues to write, paint, and work with youth. He is a fire keeper and a keeper of oral tradition.

Free Admission for Youth

Youth 18 and under always receive FREE museum admission. The ICA is committed to providing access to the art and artists of our time—and we do this with the incredible support of our community. Explore the +1 Membership: a free ICA membership program for youth 0-18.

Questions? Reach out to us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.

Get creative on select Free Thursday nights with art-making activities designed by local artists. Plus, visit the galleries, grab a drink from the ICA Wine + Coffee Bar,* and connect over creativity. No experience necessary. 

Art-making is free and meets in the State Street Corporation Lobby. While all experience levels are welcome, this workshop is designed for adult audiences. Participation is drop-in on a first-come, first-serve basis as space allows. *Refreshments available for purchase. 

Art-Making After Dark: Bead Boldly | March 12

A beaded brooch shaped like a strawberry, with red and green beads, displayed on a dark gray surface—perfect for adding a touch of artmaking after dark style reminiscent of ICA Boston.

Learn about the Indigenous history and fundamentals of beading with a contemporary twist with artist and designer Sebastian Ebarb. Get ready to explore, experiment, and express yourself through art! 

Tickets available Wed, Feb 11 for ICA members and Wed, Feb 18 for nonmembers.

About Sebastian Ebarb:
Sebastian Ellington Flying Eagle Ebarb is a designer, artist, writer, educator, and enrolled member of the Choctaw-Apache Tribe of Ebarb. Based in Boston, he is the former Design Director for the City of Boston; a Teaching Professor of Design at Northeastern University; and the founder of Nahi, a design studio focused on accessible, community-rooted work. His creative practice is grounded in Native identity, care, and cultural connection—especially for those living in urban settings. 

This program is inspired by Caroline Monnet: Man-made Land. 

Make a postcard that celebrates motherhood! Using colored pencils, creative drawing tools, and decorative materials, create artwork and write a message that honors either yourself, a mother, or an important person in your life.

This is a drop-in, self-guided activity, as space permits. This activity is on the first floor in the ICA Wine + Coffee Bar.

Playing Together | 12–4 PM

Want to make more art? Create and collaborate in Playing Together, an interactive installation by Boston-based artist ponnapa prakkamakul. Make your own artwork that reflects on the role of play in your life. Using wooden square tiles and a variety of sculptural, textured, and colorful materials, make a “Joy Connector” to take home or add to a mosaic of visitor creations.

Free Admission for Youth

Youth 18 and under always receive FREE museum admission. The ICA is committed to providing access to the art and artists of our time—and we do this with the incredible support of our community. Explore the +1 Membership: a free ICA membership program for youth 0-18.

Questions? Reach out to us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.

Visit the ICA during school vacation week for hands-on artmaking in the Bank of America Art Lab! Inspired by the exhibition Stanley Whitney: How High the Moon, create a colorful painted keepsake using bold colors, abstraction, and musical inspiration found in Whitney’s artwork. Participation is drop-in on a first-come, first-served basis. Last entry 30 minutes before closing. 

Free Admission for Youth

Youth 18 and under always receive FREE museum admission. The ICA is committed to providing access to the art and artists of our time—and we do this with the incredible support of our community. Explore the +1 Membership: a free ICA membership program for youth 0-18.

Questions? Reach out to us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.

Your support helps keep programs like this free and accessible! If you are able, please consider becoming a member or making a one-time gift to support the ICA. 

Calling all teens! Join us at the Bank of America Art Lab for an exclusive after-hours look into Boston-artist ponnapa prakkamakul’s new mural and interactive art making experience, Playing Together. Explore play through creating your own art and engage with other visitors through playing with the new interactive mural! 

This is a free event for teens. RSVP is required to participate.

But wait… there’s more!!! Do you hope to stay connected to the art industry? You will have the amazing and limited chance to be interviewed and featured in a documentary on themes of joy and play! Volunteers are being taken now!

Create and collaborate in Playing Together, an interactive installation by Boston-based artist ponnapa prakkamakul in the Bank of America Art Lab. Join others in a life-size game of Snakes and Ladders and explore ponnapa’s reimagination of this ancient pastime. Make your own artwork that reflects on the role of play in your life—create a game, share a joyful memory, or build from your imagination. Using wooden square tiles and a variety of sculptural, textured, and colorful materials, participants can create a “Joy Connector” to take home or add to a mosaic of visitor creations.

About the Artist

ponnapa prakkamakul (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist and landscape architect based in Massachusetts. Her place-specific installation explores the relationship between humans and their environments, aiming to create a sense of place and belonging. Inspired by landscape and people at the sites of her projects, ponnapa’s works tell stories of place and amplify voices from people in those locations. Her projects often take the form of bright, colorful sculptures and murals that respond to human scale, inviting passersby to engage with, touch, sit, or even hop on them. ponnapa holds a Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design.

Free Admission for Youth

Youth 18 and under always receive FREE museum admission. The ICA is committed to providing access to the art and artists of our time—and we do this with the incredible support of our community. Explore the +1 Membership: a free ICA membership program for youth 0-18.

Questions? Reach out to us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.

Find your muse with an evening of experimental printmaking and collage. With the guidance of Boston-based printmaker Louis Meola, play with collage and printmaking using found objects to make one-of-a-kind abstract portraits. No experience necessary, just come ready to get creative and try something new. Grab a drink from the ICA Wine + Coffee Bar* and get creative together! 

While all experience levels are welcome, this workshop is designed for adults. Supplies are limited; first come, first served. This program is inspired by the exhibition Sara Cwynar. 

Artmaking is free and meets in the State Street Corporation Lobby. While all experience levels are welcome, this workshop is designed for adult audiences. Participation is drop-in on a first-come, first-serve basis as space allows. *Refreshments available for purchase.   

About Louis Meola:

A person with a shaved head and a beard, donning a white shirt and blue apron, stands near a large metal printmaking press 

Louis Meola is a Boston local who received a BFA in printmaking from Emmanuel College and an MFA from SMFA at Tufts University. An avid printmaker who will “literally print anything”, Louis has made prints with a multitude of nonrational matrices. Materials like discarded metal or flattened tomato cans all have a story that connects Louis’ practice with family, tradition, and everyday life.