Calling all high school students! Join teen photographers from April Break Intensive: Special Focus for ICA Picture Day at our Seaport Studio. Work with a Special Focus photographer to make portrait of yourself! Use your portraits for professional headshots, senior pictures, or just a cute lil pic!
Each session will last 20 minutes and be completed by our teen photographers in our Special Focus program. RSVP is required ahead of time. Once you sign up, we will reach out to you to confirm your timeslot.
Questions? Email teens@icaboston.org or text or call 339-236-3039
Photo by Lauren Miller
ICA Teens presents Spring Showcase. Join us for a night of amplifying teen voices, musical performances, a photography exhibition, and film screenings. This event is free and open to all ages. Light food & drinks provided.
This event will showcase work by members of the Photography Collective, Fast Forward, AMP: Music Production February Break Intensive, and April Break Intensive: Special Focus Photography programs. This event will be hosted in collaboration with members of the Teen Arts Council and Teen Exhibitions Program.
Art by Adonis T.
Teen Arts Council presents Teen Night. Enjoy a night where teens take over the museum! Inspired by the exhibitions Firelei Báez and Wu Tsang: Of Whales, join us for a fun night full of immersive art and creative space. Feel welcomed into our wave of comfort and explorative activities!
Happenings
Text by Sara H.
Photo by Lauren Miller
Experience a brand-new exhibition and take a closer look at our works on view during April School Vacation Week. Create art inspired by Wordplay, join a +1 Youth Tour to learn more about Firelei Báez, and enjoy gorgeous views of the harbor in spring!
1st Floor, Bank of America Art Lab
Experiment with stamping, drawing, and collaging to craft a visual narrative that’s all about you. What’s your story? Celebrate your individuality as you playfully explore storytelling with words and pictures. All activities are drop-in, first come first served, space is limited.
Discover our feature exhibition Firelei Báez in an interactive tour led by one of the ICA’s expert guides. +1 member exclusive tours invite youth members aged 12 and under along with 1 accompanying guest to discover the art and artists of our time during a visit to the ICA. +1 youth members can always bring 1 adult guest for free to the museum! Note: The content of these tours is geared to the age groups listed above but are not limited to those age groups.
Tours at 12:30 PM are targeted towards youth members 6 years old and under.
Tours at 2:30 PM are targeted towards youth members 7–12 years old.
For questions, please email plus1@icaboston.org. Find out more
+1 Teen Members join Boston-based photographer Tiffany Binger for an afternoon of photography and exploration at the ICA Seaport Studio. Learn the basics of photography in this FREE workshop for +1 Teen Members 13-18 years old, inspired by ICA exhibition Firelei Báez. Note: The content of these tours is geared to the age groups listed above.
For questions, please email plus1@icaboston.org. Find out more
Head up to the 4th floor to view our current exhibits: Firelei Báez, Wu Tsang: Of Whales, Wordplay. Stop by the 1st floor Lobby to view our Art Wall installation, Igshaan Adams. The Galleries are open from 10 AM–5 PM.
Non Issue Studio is a collaboration between Brooke Scibelli and Dyllan Nguyen where they create handmade goods and develop creative workshops. Their furry studio assistant Patina stamps a paw of approval on each project. Learn more at www.nonissue.info and follow along on Instagram @nonissuestudio.
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.
+1 Membership is generously supported by Vertex.
Photo by Lauren Miller
Join Curatorial Assistant Tessa Bachi Haas for a deep dive into the work of Firelei Báez. Learn more about the breadth of Báez’s practice and the expansive stories she tells through the medium of painting. This program will highlight three artworks.
BPS Sundays is a new program where Boston Public Schools (BPS) students and families can visit six major cultural institutions for free on the first and second Sundays of each month through August 2024. Beginning on February 4, each BPS student and up to three adult family members can receive FREE admission to the ICA on the first two Sundays of every month by showing a school ID or their personalized BPS email, sent by BPS each week before each month’s program.
Use the promo code WELCOMEBPS when reserving tickets online for these dates and check in at the Visitor Services Desk with your ticket and school information.
For questions about this program, please email BPSsundays@boston.gov.
Join us for a day of family fun exploring the intersection of art and words! Visit our exhibition Wordplay to see how artists use text in their work. Using inspiration from the galleries, create artwork using letters and words in unexpected ways. Watch performers of all ages from Urbanity Dance interpret stories through dance, then participate in a workshop that combines word games and movement. All activities are drop-in, first come first served, space is limited. Reserve free admission tickets online in advance. *
*On Saturday, April 27, museum admission is FREE for families when accompanied by kids ages 12 and under, with up to 2 adults per family. Tickets must be reserved online in advance. Use the code PLAYDATE when reserving your ticket(s). Advance tickets are strongly recommended; day-of tickets are not guaranteed.
1st Floor, Bank of America Art Lab
Join us in the Art Lab, and make art inspired by Wordplay! Visitors are encouraged to experiment with combining and layering words and letters to create scenes, images, or exciting patterns. All activities are drop-in, first come first served, space is limited.
3rd Floor, Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater
Come see a performance showcasing Urbanity’s Youth Performance Groups (Mini, Junior, and Senior Hip Hop Crews, as well as Junior and Senior Contemporary Companies) and Urbanity’s Adult Hip Hop Crew! After the show, audience members will be invited to join the dancers onstage for a short workshop and dance party.
2nd Floor, Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater
Join Urbanity faculty and professional company member Haley Day for an on-stage workshop! After a short warm-up, participants will be guided through movement activities themed around word play, journeys, and pathways. Come move, groove, and stretch your creative muscles!
4th Floor, Galleries
Enjoy a staff-led reading of family-friendly storybooks that enhance connection with artwork on view. Think about how authors blend imagery and words to help readers engage with their stories in different ways!
Urbanity Dance is a nonprofit arts organization that exists to inspire, engage, and empower individuals and communities through the art of dance and movement. Founded by Director Betsi Graves, Urbanity Dance was created in 2011 in the spirit of three goals: 1) to propel contemporary dance to the forefront of Boston’s cultural landscape; 2) to serve an unmet demand for affordable and accessible dance training; and 3) to leverage dance as a tool to foster bodily autonomy and creativity in local schools and community spaces. Through three interconnected pillars of Company, School, and Community, the organization offers a resilient, powerful community platform that builds synergy, investment, and connection.
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.
Photo by Sunny Leerasanthanah
One of the most exciting painters of her generation, Firelei Báez makes work that explores the multilayered legacy of colonial histories and the African diaspora in the Caribbean and beyond. Her exuberant paintings feature finely wrought, complex, and layered uses of pattern, decoration, and saturated color, often overlaid on maps made during colonial rule in the Americas. On the opening night of her first North American museum survey, Báez will look back at her remarkable artistic practice, including her 2021 ICA Watershed installation. Báez will be joined by Julie Crooks, Curator of the Arts of Global Africa and Diaspora at the Art Gallery of Ontario; and Ruth Erickson, Barbara Lee Chief Curator at the ICA. Don’t miss this engaging night of dialogue!
Make the most of your ICA visit! Explore the galleries and visit the ICA’s featured exhibition: Firelei Báez. Enjoy a drink and light bite in our waterfront Wine + Coffee Bar, featuring sommelier-selected natural wines and more. Be sure to drop by the ICA Store and bring a bit of ICA art and inspiration home with you.
Are there accessibility accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.
Firelei Báez is organized by Eva Respini, Deputy Director and Director of Curatorial Programs, Vancouver Art Gallery, (former Barbara Lee Chief Curator, ICA/Boston), with Tessa Bachi Haas, Curatorial Assistant.
Major support for Firelei Báez is provided by is provided by Hauser & Wirth, the Henry Luce Foundation, and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.
This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, Karen and Brian Conway, David and Jocelyne DeNunzio, Mathieu O. Gaulin, The Kotzubei-Beckmann Family Philanthropic Fund, Lise and Jeffrey Wilks, an anonymous donor, the Jennifer Epstein Fund for Women Artists, and the ICA’s Avant Guardian Society.
Celebrate Jellycat’s 25th anniversary—featuring all new Jellycat Jack releases and many more spring 2024 introductions. Shop the new collection, snap selfies with your new friends, and enter in our giveaway for a limited edition Jellycat. Plus, spend $100+ and receive a free Jellycat Bag Charm! Be there, or be jelly!
Photo by Lauren Miller
Photo by Lauren Miller
Photo by Lauren Miller
Photo by Lauren Miller
Get creative with us in Destiny Doorways, an installation by Boston artist Mithsuca Berry in the Bank of America Art Lab. Enter a bright, colorful, nature-inspired space where you can design your own visual or written affirmations using some of the artist’s favorite mediums, including paint, textiles, and poetry.
Destiny Doorways features botanical motifs that evoke the winding pathways you might follow in different parts of your life. Each doorway reveals a message and is an invitation to reflect on a new journey to transformation. What pathways have you taken? Which doorway will you open?
Dive into an immersive hands-on art-making experience and add your artwork to a display of visitor reflections and creations!
Art Lab activities are free with museum admission and are drop-in on a first-come-first-serve basis — space is limited. Last entry 30 minutes before closing.
Mithsuca Berry (they/them) is a Haitian artist, educator, and storyteller from Boston and former member of the ICA Teen Arts Council. Their work spans many mediums, including painting, digital illustration, fiber, and art education. Throughout their practice they have transformed what creating art means to them. Each piece marks an epiphany in their journey as it relates to existing as a black queer/non-binary person of Caribbean descent, fostering new connections to identity and healing. Their hope is that this process brings healing on a collective scale, protecting the future autonomy of people like them.
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 us at familyprograms@icaboston.org.