EIN 04-2104327

Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)

IRS 501(c) type
501(c)(3)
Num. employees
239
City
Year formed
1936
Most recent tax filings
2022-06-01
NTEE code, primary
Description
ICA strives to share the pleasures of reflection, inspiration, provocation, and imagination that contemporary art offers through public access to art, artists, and the creative process.
Also known as...
Icaboston
Total revenues
$23,728,812
2022
Total expenses
$21,762,422
2022
Total assets
$113,826,722
2022
Num. employees
239
2022

Program areas at ICA

Art exhibitions:gallery presentations: The ica presented fourteen Contemporary Art exhibitions featuring painting, drawing, sculpture, video, installation, and more. Fy22 gallery exhibits attendance totaled 225,091 visitors, watershed attendance numbered 22,274, and in-person programming attendance numbered 61,259. (see continuation on schedule o)eva lewittmarch 20, 2021 - october 23, 2022sandra and gerald fineberg Art walleva lewitt's vibrant, handmade sculptures are fashioned from everyday commercial and industrial materials. She casts, dyes, and cuts these pliable, soft, and often synthetic materials before composing them in captivating arrangements of hanging geometric forms and gradations of undulating color. Her large-scale abstract artworks often recall domestic or theatrical decor, such as curtains, whose colors are meant to "radiate heat and "generate energy," according to lewitt. Just as curtains evoke an interplay between inside and outside (making a boundary between public and private or alternatively revealing and concealing) lewitt's intuitive material arrangements play with unresolved tensions: between transparency and opacity, gravity and weightlessness, abstraction and decoration. Conceived for The ica's sandra and gerald fineberg Art wall and structured by The particular shape of The museum's architecture, untitled (mesh circles) is a monumental sculpture made of bands of colorful coated mesh fabric whose shifting linear composition creates a number of interlocking circular forms. While coated meshes have a variety of uses ranging from privacy screens to high-visibility workwear, lewitt transforms lengths of The tensile fabric into an unfolding environmental sculpture that intensifies The experience of space. As The crosshatched surface pattern and fields of color overlap and respond to ambient conditions like sunlight and circulating air, a moire effect is produced: a shimmering pattern that occurs when two geometrically regular patterns are superimposed. Untitled (mesh circles) creates a dynamic and uplifting experience that vibrates throughout The museum's interior. Organized by jeffrey de blois, assistant curator and publications manager.firelei baezjuly 3, 2021 - september 6, 2021ica watershedin summer 2021, The ica watershed featured a newly commissioned, monumental sculpture by acclaimed artist firelei baez. In her largest sculptural installation to date, The artist reimagined The archeological ruins of The sans-souci palace in haiti as though they were revealed in east boston after The sea receded from The watershed floor. The watershed's location (in a working shipyard and as a trade site and point of entry and home for immigrants over decades) provided a pivotal point of reference. Baez embedded sans-souci within The geological layers of boston, where histories of revolution and independence are integral to The city's identity. This site-specific installation invited visitors to traverse passageways and travel through time, engaging with streams of influence and interconnectedness. The work's intricately painted architectural surfaces include symbols of healing and resistance, patterning drawn from west african indigo printing traditions (later used in The american south), and sea growths native to caribbean waters. Baez's sculpture points to The centuries-long exchanges of ideas and influence between europe, The african continent, and The americas. Baez was born in 1981 in santiago de los caballeros, dominican republic, to a dominican mother and a father of haitian descent. Her upbringing between hispaniola's two countries, which have a longstanding history of tension predicated on ethnic difference, informs her concerns with The politics of place and heritage. She currently lives and works in new york city.organized by eva respini, barbara lee chief curator.stephen hamilton: indigojuly 3, 2021 - september 6, 2021ica watershedon display in The ica watershed harbor room is a project by boston-based artist stephen hamilton highlighting The generations-long tradition of indigo dyeing in west africa too often ignored in The accounting of early american history. Included is hamilton's painting owners of The earth (2020), a richly layered mixed-media work that refers to traditional artforms and philosophies from The yoruba people in west africa. The work is accompanied by a description of The unrecognized historical contributions of west africa to indigo use in The americas and educational materials depicting indigo dying techniques that The artist adopted during his research in southwestern nigeria. Hamilton brings these histories (referenced in firelei baez's monumental watershed installation currently on view) to life through words, images, and textiles. Events of 2020 brought The world to a halt, affecting global commerce and security, putting our own mortality in sharp focus, and heightening existing inequities, injustices, and political tensions. In this time, we asked: what is The role of Art and museums?organized by monica garza, charlotte wagner director of education.virgil abloh: "figures of speech"july 3, 2021 - september 26, 2021bridgitt and bruce evans and karen and brian conway galleriesvirgil abloh: "figures of speech" is The first museum exhibition devoted to The work of The genre-bending artist and designer virgil abloh (b. 1980, rockford, il). Abloh pioneers a practice that cuts across media and connects visual artists, musicians, graphic designers, fashion designers, and architects. Abloh cultivated an interest in design and music at an early age, finding inspiration in The urban culture of chicago. While pursuing a master's degree in architecture from The Illinois Institute of technology, he worked on album covers, concert designs, and merchandising. In 2013, abloh founded his stand-alone fashion brand off-white in milan, italy, and, in 2018, assumed The position of artistic director of louis vuitton's menswear. Organized by The museum of Contemporary Art chicago and set in an immersive space designed by rem koolhaas's renowned architecture firm oma*amo, The exhibition will offer an in-depth look at defining highlights of abloh's career, including signature clothing collections, video documentation of iconic fashion shows, distinctive furniture and graphic design work, and collaborative projects with Contemporary artists. A program of cross-disciplinary offerings will mirror The artist's range of interests across music and design.deeply invested in creating imagery that is legible and accessible, nina chanel abney (b. 1982, chicago) is known for weaving colorful geometric shapes, cartoons, language, and symbols into chaotic and energetic compositions. At The ica, she has created a mural that speaks to social tensions in The digital age, including The constant stream of true and false information, The dilemma of liberal racism, and abuses of power that lead to structural inequality.virgil abloh: "figures of speech" is organized by museum of Contemporary Art chicago. The exhibition tour is made possible by kenneth c. griffin. The exhibition is curated by michael darling, former james w. alsdorf chief curator at mca chicago, and is designed by samir bantal, director of amo, The research and design studio of oma. The ica's presentation is coordinated by ruth erickson, mannion family curator. Ica teens x oj slaughter: "breaking cycles"july 3, 2021 - october 17, 2021poss family mediathequeas part of a larger photography project for virgil abloh's "church & state," boston-based artist oj slaughter (born 1993 in richmond, Virginia) collaborated with ica teens on an editorial fashion shoot inspired by abloh's work and his theme of "breaking The rules." Participants from across ica teen programs were invited to respond to a prompt about how they break The rules, and six were seleted to collaborate one-on-one with slaughter on a set of portraits in which they styled their own looks from virgil abloh fashions created for The ica. Central to slaughter's portraiture practice is to create a collaborative environment where subjects can claim space and determine how they express and present themselves creatively - an approach that aligns with The philosophies underlying The ica's teen programming. In words and images that are at turns dynamic, joyful, confrontational, and intimate, six ica teens directly address their own autonomy and others' misconceptions of what it is to be a young person.this presentation was organized by kris wilton, director of creative content and digital engagement, and betsy gibbons, director of teen programs, with nohemi rodriguez, teen programs associate.2021 james and audrey foster prizeseptember 1, 2021 - january 30, 2022fotene demoulas gallery
Earned income activities: - event space rentals: The ica had 48 event rentals in fy22 that were attended by 4,841 visitors who had The opportunity to view The ica's award winning architectural design and exhibitions.
Education, adults, teensthe ica offers a robust range of educational programs built around themes in Contemporary Art. Geared toward adult, teen, and family audiences, these include public programs, digital resources, and more. Adult & interpretive programsadult & interpretive lecture programs were made available both online (streaming) and in-person, and served a total of 1,312 people. Thousands more accessed recorded program content via ica digital platforms. Select lecture programs in fy22 were made available (see continuation on schedule o)through The ica's website among other resources. Adult workshops and programs (in-person)* boston book festival unbound: a warming world and your wip with carrick dalton and erica ferencik* Art demo: pysanky with gretjen helenelecture programs (virtual)* conversations on deana lawson: gloria sutton and eva respini* conversations on deana lawson: deborah t. willis and oluremi onabanjo* curator tour: a place for me with ruth ericksonlecture programs * careers and creativity: rob 'problak' gibbs, annie morgan, and frank 'The butcher' rivera with greg ball (live stream)* The artist's voice: marlon forrester, eben haines, and dell marie hamilton with jeffrey de blois (live stream)* The artist's voice: deana lawson with tina campt (live stream)* The artist's voice: napoleon jones-henderson with leslie king-hammond* The artist's voice: raul de nieves with jeffrey de blois* The artist's voice: david antonio cruz and doron langberg with grace sterling stowell and ruth erickson* king boston's embrace ideas festival: featuring hank willis thomas, sheena collier, michael bobbitt, andres holder, and more* exhibition tour: deana lawson with graduate student lecturer kevin salazar, tufts university* exhibition tour: deana lawson with graduate student lecturer aubrey beam, tufts university* exhibition tour: a place for me with graduate student lecturer kevin salazar, tufts universityfamily programs due to The pandemic, The bank of america Art lab was open for drop-in artmaking activities from february- june in 2022. Family programs welcomed 3,800 visitors for drop-in artmaking during this time in The Art lab, watershed and other museum spaces. The ica launched a visual arts group for middle school youth (grades 6-8) called Art (co)lab. The year-long program (november-may) served an additional 14 youth, and met both virtually and in-person. Family programs distributed 7,517 individual Art kits through The east boston food and Art distribution program, boston public schools, boston public library, and on-site at The ica in conjunction with play dates. Family programs also distributed 2,173 gallery games resource cards to visitors over The course of The fiscal year.in fiscal year 2022, 600 Art kits were distributed to families through The following boston public library branches: * roxbury* honan-allston* upham's corner* lower mills* adams street* codman square* egleston square* grove hall* field's corner* east bostonextended youth programs (virtual & in person)* Art (co)labplay dates* summer stories: chapter 2 (virtual & in person)* summer stories: chapter 3 (virtual & in person)* tiny treasures* spellbound sights* family flicks* together* stories untold* shine bright* build up* pridefamily workshops and programs * watershed family day* february school vacation week: bridging creativity, "filling your cup"* april school vacation week: bridging creativity, "comic strips"community partnershipsthe ica collaborated with numerous organizations throughout fy22. Below is a list of select partner organizations.boston public schools arts credit program partner schools * boston community leadership academy* boston day and evening academy* boston international newcomers academy* charlestown high school* east boston high school* english high school* excel high school* fenway high school* greater egleston high school* new mission high school* o'bryant school of mathematics & science* snowden international schoolica classroom kit pilot program partners* boston public library branches: - adams street - codman square - east boston - fields corner - honan-allston - lower mills* east boston community organizations - east boston social - east boston neighborhood health center* boston public schools: - sam adams elementary school - mckay k-8 schoolcommunity partner organizations (select list)* afrobeats dance boston* bagly* beat The odds* boston public library* boston public schools* boston university: upward bound* boston international kids film festival* boys and girls club of boston* clubhouse network* concepts* east boston neighborhood health center* east boston social centers* eastie farms* eco youth grass roots* harvard graduate school of education* haus of glitter* herman miller* king boston* Massachusetts college of Art and design* metropolitan museum of Art* orient heights housing development* porter square books* space for change* The gottabees* The hiphop transformation* umass boston: urban scholars* urbano* veronica robles cultural center* zumixtour and group visit programs The tours and group visit programs for k-12 youth served 2,924 people through 164 self-guided visits. 2,044 college, adult and senior visitors attended self-guided group visits and public tours in fy22. Teen programs teen programs served a total of 3,991 youth through in-person after school programs and events in fy22. In addition, teen programs distributed 1,891 Art kits to teens and served 230 teens through virtual programs. The teen gallery, located in seaport studio, welcomed 256 visitors to tour The exhibitions on view. All programs are listed below. Educational resources and student films created through ica teen programs were also accessible via The icateens.org website and social media channels.artist encounters & interviews* artist interview: marlon forrestorextended teen programs * artists & writers collective* fast forward thursday* fast forward friday* music production: amp* photography collective* photography: special focus* teen arts council (summer 2021; school year 2021-2022)* teen exhibitions programteen arts councilin summer 2021, students from The following schools were represented in The teen arts council: * braintree high school* boston arts academy* boston latin school* boston prep* dearborn stem academy* fenway high school* lynn classical high school* northeast metrotech* o'bryant school of mathematics and science* randolph high school* revere high school
Performing and media artsthe ica presents some of The most innovative and forward-looking choreographers, musicians, filmmakers, theater companies and multi-disciplinary artists from boston and The rest of The world. In fy22 we offered 31 programs (performing arts and film). Attendance totaled approximately 15,972.we organized 49 performances by The following performers, artists and ensemble companies. Attendance of these performances totaled 13,565. Dance/theater* 600 highwaymen: a thousand ways: an assembly* maya beiser, wendy whelan, lucinda childs, and david lang: The day* rddi: new england now dance platform* a.i.m by kyle abraham* global arts live presents - boston dance theater - raphael xavier - jean appolon expressionsmusic* harborwalk sounds: - melvin lam + estefana nuez villamandos - esperanza delgado - alyssa payne - taylor deneen - mom rock - The thistle brothers - bookmatch - sheila del bosque trio* ica summer sessions: - eph see - squirrel flower - miranda rae - sidney gish - oompa - notebook p - photocomfort* black joy day 2021* jazz urbane cafe at The ica* an evening with The artery 25* mary halvorson's code girl* vijay iyer trioin fy22 we presented 13 screenings of The following films. Attendance at these screenings totaled 2,407.film* 2021 sundance film festival shorts* 2022 oscar-nominated short films* wicked queer film screening: orfeas2021
Program marketing and communications: developed and implemented marketing, advertising, social media, and public relations strategies that promoted The experience of The ica including The exhibitions, virtual programs, educational, community and social programs, and free holiday mondays to The public and ica members. Exhibitions and performances received critical and popular acclaim, and were well received by visitors with high engagement and satisfaction ratings. In fiscal year 2022, The ica welcomed a total of 204,914 visitors to The museum and was highlighted by The Art newspaper in their annual attendance survey (which includes major museums around The world) as one of The most successful museums in The u.s. to have regained its attendance following The pandemic closures.
Memberships:membership contributions help The ica present exhibitions, performances, and programs for teens, families and adults, creating a place where people of all ages and backgrounds can share The excitement of new Art and ideas. In fiscal year 2022 The membership department served 6,093 households and had 12,272 member visits to enjoy their primary benefits of free museum admission, special members' visitation hours, free and discounted virtual events, and discounts in The ica store.

Who funds Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)

Grants from foundations and other nonprofits
GrantmakerDescriptionAmount
Mannion Family FoundationGeneral Purpose$4,000,000
Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift FundFor Grant Recipient's Exempt Purposes$3,204,386
The Boston Foundation (TBF)Operating Support/annual Fund$1,139,900
...and 55 more grants received totalling $12,950,993

Personnel at ICA

NameTitleCompensation
Natasa VuceticChief Financial and Operations Officer / Chief Financial Officer$181,359
Eva RespiniBarbara Lee Chief Curator$228,643
Katrina FosterDirector of Development$195,485
Monica GarzaDirector of Education$132,143
John AndressDirector of Performing Arts and Media Arts / Director of Performing and Media Arts / Associate Director of Performing Arts$131,654
...and 15 more key personnel

Financials for ICA

RevenuesFYE 06/2022
Total grants, contributions, etc.$18,928,827
Program services$2,457,155
Investment income and dividends$1,127,242
Tax-exempt bond proceeds$0
Royalty revenue$0
Net rental income$26,150
Net gain from sale of non-inventory assets$-468,601
Net income from fundraising events$-405,593
Net income from gaming activities$0
Net income from sales of inventory$1,875,969
Miscellaneous revenues$187,663
Total revenues$23,728,812

Form 990s for ICA

Fiscal year endingDate received by IRSFormPDF link
2022-062023-05-12990View PDF
2021-062022-05-10990View PDF
2020-062021-05-25990View PDF
2019-062020-10-14990View PDF
2018-062019-06-19990View PDF
...and 8 more Form 990s
Data update history
May 12, 2023
Updated personnel
Identified 8 new personnel
May 9, 2023
Used new vendors
Identified 1 new vendor, including
May 6, 2023
Received grants
Identified 1 new grant, including a grant for $15,000 from Robert Lehman Foundation
August 3, 2022
Received grants
Identified 5 new grant, including a grant for $75,000 from Hearst Foundations
September 28, 2021
Received grants
Identified 6 new grant, including a grant for $50,000 from The Red Elm Tree Foundation
Nonprofit Types
Arts, culture, and humanities nonprofitsMuseumsCharities
Issues
Arts, cultural, and humanities
Characteristics
MembershipsFundraising eventsOperates internationallyReceives government fundingEndowed supportCommunity engagement / volunteeringGala fundraisersTax deductible donations
General information
Address
25 Harbor Shore Dr
Boston, MA 02210
Metro area
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
County
Suffolk County, MA
Website URL
icaboston.org/ 
Phone
(617) 478-3100
Facebook page
ICA.Boston 
Twitter profile
@icainboston 
IRS details
EIN
04-2104327
Fiscal year end
June
Taxreturn type
Form 990
Year formed
1936
Eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions (Pub 78)
Yes
Categorization
NTEE code, primary
A51: Art Museums
NAICS code, primary
7121: Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions
Parent/child status
Independent
Free account sign-up

Want updates when ICA has new information, or want to find more organizations like Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)?

Create free Cause IQ account