The Veronica Robles Cultural Center (VROCC) presents its 2026 Día de Muertos celebration, New England’s largest multi-day Day of the Dead event. The celebration features a series of events and an exhibition honoring ancestors and deceased loved ones. Now in its 14th year, VROCC’s Día de Muertos celebration is a cornerstone of cultural enrichment in New England, preserving tradition while fostering intercultural dialogue across Massachusetts. 

This year, the exhibition will be open Saturday through Monday. The celebration will conclude on Monday with guided school tours. 

For more information or to schedule a school visit, please email info@vrocc.org. 

Location: ICA Watershed, 256 Marginal St., East Boston 

Note: ICA Water Shuttles will not be running. 

Join the ICA Teen Arts Council for an unforgettable Teen Night! Organized by teens for teens, this evening features art-making activities, performances, and a dance party, plus free snacks and giveaways. This event will feature a fashion show organized by ICA Teen Exhibitions Program in collaboration with Boston Caribbean Fashion Week. The first 50 people to arrive get a surprise.

Calling all teen performers! Apply to perform by September 15. Each act will receive $100 for their performance.

Calling all fashionistas and designers ages 14-24! Apply to showcase your original runway looks by October 2.

Questions or requests for accessibility assistance? Email teens@icaboston.org or text or call (339) 236-3039. 

Engage with nine decades of ICA history during a guided tour of 90 YEARS. Led by a Graduate Student Lecturer, deepen your understanding of exhibition artists and themes through guided close looking and discussion. 

FREE with museum admission or membership; no pre-registration required. Tour meets on 4th floor. Please note: this tour does not include timed entry to LOVE IS CALLING.  

90 YEARS is organized by Meghan Clare Considine, Curatorial Assistant; Jeffrey De Blois, Mannion Family Curator; Ruth Erickson, Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs; Max Gruber, Curatorial Assistant; Tessa Bachi Haas, Assistant Curator; and Erika Umali, Curator of Collections, with Brianne Chapelle, Curatorial Department Manager.

This exhibition is funded, in part, with support from Kim Sinatra, the Brizius Family Fund for Artists, The Kristen and Kent Lucken Fund for Photography, and Leadership in Art Museums, an initiative to create more racial equity in art museum leadership, supported by the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Pilot House Philanthropy, and Alice L. Walton Foundation.

The 1960s Andy Warhol Gallery is supported by Judi Kaufman and Arthur Rubin.

With warmest thanks, we gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the ICA’s Avant Guardian Society in making this exhibition possible.

Join us at the ICA for Black Joy Java, a collaboration with visionary Thaddeus Miles – acclaimed photographer, passionate community leader, and the heartbeat behind the Black Joy Project; James ‘Jimmy’ Hills – host of Boston’s number one community driven platform, Java With Jimmy, media personality and community advocate; Coalition for a Resilient and Inclusive Waterfront – an alliance of diverse non-profit organizations focused on bringing the pressing issues facing Boston’s harbor, harbor islands, and rivers to the forefront of the public conversation, and co-sponsor, for a celebratory outdoor concert for the seventh annual Black Joy Day in the City of Boston. 

Black Joy Java will feature poet and artist Amanda Shea, R&B vocalist Aric B., comedian Jonathan Gates; and soulful and joyful DJ sets from TROY Frost and Jeff 2Timez. 

More than just an evening of art, food and fellowship, this year’s Black Joy Java continues to stand tall as a continual beacon of resistance. Through the harmony of Black music, the depth of poetry, some comedic joy and profound dialogues on restorative justice, we aim to amplify the empowerment and resilience of Black voices worldwide. 

Founded in 1936, the ICA is one of the oldest museums dedicated to contemporary art in the United States. On this special anniversary, 90 YEARS revisits nine exhibitions and initiatives from the ICA’s history, tracing the museum’s evolution alongside the ever-changing landscape of contemporary art. Join Curatorial Assistant Max Gruber for a conversation about pivotal moments in the ICA’s history with a focus on the landmark 1941 exhibition Modern Mexican Painters.

About Max Gruber

Max Gruber is Curatorial Assistant at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston. He has contributed to several ICA exhibitions, including Tau Lewis: Spirit Level, The Gun Violence Memorial Project, Charles Atlas: About Time, and An Indigenous Present. Before joining the ICA, Gruber contributed to the exhibition and accompanying publication for Humane Ecology: Eight Positions at the Clark Art Institute. He holds an M.A. in the History of Art from Williams College. 

90 YEARS is organized by Meghan Clare Considine, Curatorial Assistant; Jeffrey De Blois, Mannion Family Curator; Ruth Erickson, Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs; Max Gruber, Curatorial Assistant; Tessa Bachi Haas, Assistant Curator; and Erika Umali, Curator of Collections, with Brianne Chapelle, Curatorial Department Manager.

This exhibition is funded, in part, with support from Kim Sinatra, the Brizius Family Fund for Artists, The Kristen and Kent Lucken Fund for Photography, and Leadership in Art Museums, an initiative to create more racial equity in art museum leadership, supported by the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Pilot House Philanthropy, and Alice L. Walton Foundation.

The 1960s Andy Warhol Gallery is supported by Judi Kaufman and Arthur Rubin.

With warmest thanks, we gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the ICA’s Avant Guardian Society in making this exhibition possible.

Take an afternoon art break to look, share, and connect with others. Eyes on Art, a new online program at the ICA for individuals 65+, encourages deep looking at a single work of art from the ICA’s permanent collection. Led by ICA Gallery Educators, participants share their observations and interpretations in this 45-minute exercise of close looking. This program will encourage you to slow down and reconsider sometimes familiar artworks with fresh eyes, as we celebrate the ICA’s 90-year anniversary. No art knowledge and experience needed to participate — only your eyes and willingness to embrace new observations. This is not a lecture program. While this program is designed for individuals 65+, adults of all ages are welcome. 

Registration for this online program series is required to receive web links. Discussions will be live on Zoom and will not be recorded. Registration includes access to upcoming fall season discussions (October–December).

The ICA thanks the City of Boston’s Age Strong Commission for their collaboration on this online program series.  

Focus Artworks

October 20 | Becky Suss’s 8 Greenwood Place (1985-88)   

What can an interior domestic space reveal about its inhabitants? Becky Suss’s painting, currently on view at the ICA, inspires us to look more deeply during our first session of Eyes on Art. 

November 17 | Mickalene Thomas’s Monet’s Salon 

Mickalene Thomas’s popular painting among ICA visitors — Monet’s Salon takes a different approach for depicting an interior space. See what makes this painting so unique and delightful for many.

December 15 | Jay Lynn Gomez’s An Afternoon in Madison Square Park  

Eyes on Art concludes with a study of a newly acquired artwork created by artist Jay Lynn Gomez. Get a head start and examine this expansive painting with us before it is unveiled at the ICA in 2027. 

Founded in 1936, the ICA is one of the oldest museums dedicated to contemporary art in the United States. On this special anniversary, 90 YEARS revisits nine exhibitions and initiatives from the ICA’s history, tracing the museum’s evolution alongside the ever-changing landscape of contemporary art. Join Curator of Collections Erika Umali for a conversation about pivotal moments in the ICA’s history with a focus on the ICA Archives. 

About Erika Umali

Erika Umali is the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston’s first Curator of Collections. She leads strategy around collection development and practices, and highlights the ICA’s collection through focused exhibitions and programming. She has contributed to several ICA exhibitions, including Portraits from the ICA Collection, Wordplay, and An Indigenous Present. Previously she served as the inaugural Assistant Curator of Collections at the Brooklyn Museum where she supported collecting strategies, shepherded thousands of acquisitions, and co-curated Jeffrey Gibson: When Fire Is Applied to a Stone It Cracks. Her work focuses on cross-cultural exchange, accessibility within cultural institutions, engaging local and source communities, and decolonizing practices. 

90 YEARS is organized by Meghan Clare Considine, Curatorial Assistant; Jeffrey De Blois, Mannion Family Curator; Ruth Erickson, Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs; Max Gruber, Curatorial Assistant; Tessa Bachi Haas, Assistant Curator; and Erika Umali, Curator of Collections, with Brianne Chapelle, Curatorial Department Manager.

This exhibition is funded, in part, with support from Kim Sinatra, the Brizius Family Fund for Artists, The Kristen and Kent Lucken Fund for Photography, and Leadership in Art Museums, an initiative to create more racial equity in art museum leadership, supported by the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Pilot House Philanthropy, and Alice L. Walton Foundation.

The 1960s Andy Warhol Gallery is supported by Judi Kaufman and Arthur Rubin.

With warmest thanks, we gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the ICA’s Avant Guardian Society in making this exhibition possible.

You’re invited to Leilah Babirye: Embaga ya Naki ne Naki (Wedding of Naki and Naki)! 

Inspired by the idea of the queer wedding, artist Leilah Babirye debuts a new body of sculptures, each embodying a role in a wedding ceremony and adorned in headdresses and jewelry. Join Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Public Affairs Ruth Erickson for a conversation on Leilah Babirye: Embaga ya Naki ne Naki (Wedding of Naki and Naki) and learn about Babirye’s vivid installation and inventive use of debris, wood, and ceramics. 

About Ruth Erickson

Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs Ruth Erickson has been a driving force in the ICA’s curatorial department since joining the museum in 2014. Among her many projects, she has organized major thematic group exhibitions, including the critically acclaimed To Begin Again: Artists and Childhood (2022), A Place for Me: Figurative Painting Now (2022), and When Home Won’t Let You Stay: Migration through Contemporary Art (2019); a significant artist survey and publication Mark Dion: Misadventures of a 21st-Century Naturalist (2017); and solo presentations of María Berrío (2023), Barbara Kruger (2022), Vivian Suter (2019), Wangechi Mutu (2018), and Kevin Beasley (2018), among others. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications, including the 2015 exhibition and publication Leap Before You Look: Black Mountain College 1933–57 (for which she was co-editor and served as research fellow), Ruth Asawa: All is Possible (2021), Kevin Beasley (2018), Sue Williams (2015), and Take It or Leave It: Institution, Image, Ideology (2014). Before joining the ICA, Erickson was a fellow at the Institute of Contemporary Art Philadelphia (2008–10) and served as curator at Burlington City Arts (BCA) (2004–7). She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Pennsylvania, and her B.A. from Carleton College, Northfield, MN. Erickson is the recipient of a prestigious Center for Curatorial Leadership Fellowship in 2021. 

Leilah Babirye: Embaga ya Naki ne Naki (Wedding of Naki and Naki) is organized by Ruth Erickson, Barbara Lee Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs, with Max Gruber, Curatorial Assistant. 

Major support for the exhibition is provided by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. 

Black and white logo showing a stylized portrait on the left, Andy Warhol’s signature in the center, and the text The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts below—created to commemorate the October 2026 Opening Celebration.

Additional support is provided by Mathieu O. Gaulin and the Jennifer Epstein Fund for Women Artists. 

What does it mean to be alive at a specific point in time? 

Baltimore-based artist Cynthia Daignault meditates on this question in her monumental, multi-panel installation featured in the exhibition Cynthia Daignault: Valley. Join Curatorial Assistant Meghan Clare Considine for a conversation about this never-before-seen work and learn more about Daignault’s practice of “long-form painting.”

About Meghan Clare Considine

Meghan Clare Considine is curatorial assistant at the ICA, where she contributes to projects including Portia Zvavahera: Hidden Battles / Hondo dzakavanzika, Say It Loud: AAMARP, 1977 to Now, Lucy Raven: Rounds, and others. She organized previous exhibitions, screenings, and public programs at MASS MoCA, the Weisman Art Museum, and the Clark Art Institute. She holds an M.A. in the History of Art from Williams College. 

Cynthia Daignault: Valley is organized by Jeffrey De Blois, Mannion Family Curator, with Meghan Clare Considine, Curatorial Assistant. 

This exhibition is supported by Jim Cleary and Tobias and Kristin Welo. 

Take a closer look at To My Best Friend in this conversation with Curator of Collections Erika Umali. Learn more about the art and artists who make up ICA’s dynamic contemporary collection. 

About Erika Umali

Erika Umali is the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston’s first Curator of Collections. She leads strategy around collection development and practices, and highlights the ICA’s collection through focused exhibitions and programming. She has contributed to several ICA exhibitions, including Portraits from the ICA Collection, Wordplay, and An Indigenous Present. Previously she served as the inaugural Assistant Curator of Collections at the Brooklyn Museum where she supported collecting strategies, shepherded thousands of acquisitions, and co-curated Jeffrey Gibson: When Fire Is Applied to a Stone It Cracks. Her work focuses on cross-cultural exchange, accessibility within cultural institutions, engaging local and source communities, and decolonizing practices. 

Umali received her B.A. in anthropology from Bridgewater State University, Massachusetts, with a focus on the art and material culture of Native North America, and an M.A. in museum studies from New York University. 

To My Best Friend is organized by Erika Umali, Curator of Collections

This exhibition is funded, in part, with support from Leadership in Arts Museums, an initiative to create more racial equity in art museum leadership, supported by the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Pilot House Philanthropy, and Alice L. Walton Foundation.