$41-million ICA will open in October

For more than two years, the intersection of Belvidere and Broad streets has been a construction zone for the long-awaited Institute for Contemporary Arts, but the opening date is now within sight.

Touting nearly 41,000 square feet of flexible space, including a 33-foot high central forum, the $41 million ICA will rotate exhibitions every 12 weeks, including performances, films and interdisciplinary programs. The exhibits will also act as classrooms for students to explore the role of art in campus culture.

According to a 2013 article from the Commonwealth Times, the ICA was initially scheduled to open in Spring 2015, and estimated the total cost to be around $50 million.

The ICA was designed by Steven Holl Architects, an international award-winning architectural company, best known for designing Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Simmons Hall, the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art in Helsinki and the Bellevue Arts Museum in Washington state.

On Oct. 26 the institute will host a student preview day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. where students will be able to experience the ICA before it opens to the public.

“The institute will be the go-to place to learn about contemporary art around the world,” said ICA director Lisa Freiman. “It will allow us to use art as a catalyst for speaking about pressing issues in our society.”

The first exhibit, “Declaration,” will be on display from the ICA’s opening until Feb. 25, 2018. “Declaration” will feature painting, sculpture, multimedia, installations and performance pieces exploring themes of protest, social justice and connection.

The first exhibit will highlight the works of local, regional and international artists — including VCUarts professor Stephen Vitiello, VCU alumnus Levester Williams and Richmond-based All The Saints Theatre Company and the band GWAR.

Frieman co-curated “Declaration” along with Stephanie Smith, Amber Esseiva, Johanna Plummer and Lauren Ross. Prior to taking on the director role at the ICA, Frieman was a senior curator and chairperson of the contemporary art department at the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

Freiman said the institute will become “the anchor of the city,” and stressed the importance of involving students “from the ground up.”

By this, Freiman speaks in a literal sense, referring to the work of interior design students on the ICA in the spring of 2016.

She also referred to the great lengths the institute has gone to encourage student activity within the ICA, such as offering VCU students the opportunity to be a part of the Student Advisory Committee, and is accepting applications for student guides, gallery attendants, interns and work-study by March 3.
“Direct engagement with the arts is critical to research, scholarship, and creative expression that advance knowledge and enhance the quality of life,” said VCU president Michael Rao.

Alan Rodriguez Espinoza

Contributing Writer