Artists and COVID-19 | ICA director remains hopeful for the future
Katherine Noble, Contributing Writer Life has changed for everyone as a result of COVID-19. For Dominic Willsdon, executive director of the Institute for Contemporary Art, the biggest change has been a whole lot more sitting. In his role at the ICA, Willsdon is connecting with local artists and making plans for the future as usual, […]
‘Amazing Grace’: Aretha Franklin’s legacy brought to life at ICA
Vaila DeYoung, Contributing Writer “Amazing Grace,” opened with bright and glowing aerial shots of Los Angeles during the 1970s. Aretha Franklin was at the height of her fame in January 1972, when she decided to record a live gospel album. The camera followed traffic passing by, and then closed in to the New Temple Missionary […]
Richmond museums, theaters close and postpone events due to COVID-19
Iman Mekonen, Spectrum Editor Several nearby art museums and VCU buildings have decided to close in response to COVID-19 in an effort to prevent transmission of the virus. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts closed on Sunday and won’t open again until March 28, meaning classes, programs and […]
ICA named top 10 best new museum by USA Today
Iman Mekonen, Spectrum Editor The Institute for Contemporary Art was named a top-10 “Best New Museum” by USA Today in a list released Feb. 28 ranking museums that have opened during the last two years. The ICA, which will celebrate its two-year anniversary in April, hosts a variety of exhibitions that discuss and explore various […]
Race, history and technology unite for ‘Xenogenesis’ at ICA
Aaron Royce, Contributing Writer Electronic music poured through overhead speakers in the Institute for Contemporary Art on Friday as Richmond art fans and students filled the lobby for the opening of “The Otolith Group: Xenogenesis.” The Otolith Group’s first large-scale North American exhibit, coined after Octavia Butler’s novel series of the same name, includes vintage […]
‘Disease Thrower’: Retracing the loss and anxieties of migration
Fabiana Acosta, Contributing Writer Layers are intriguing. The layers from our lives add to who we are and develop us to who we are going to be. That was the central topic during artist Guadalupe Maravilla’s talk at the Institute for Contemporary Art on Wednesday. “You know our body is made up of layers. Seventy […]
New year, new exhibits: a preview to Richmond’s upcoming and current art exhibits
Iman Mekonen, Spectrum Editor The new year means new things to see with new galleries on display. Here’s a preview of what the local art museums and galleries have planned for their upcoming and current projects. Candela Books and Gallery Candela’s current galleries, “The Golden Age” by Alanna Airitam and “Domestic Ballads” by Patty […]
Graphic design panel shares insight in industry, representation
Iman Mekonen, Spectrum Editor The art of graphic design is more than what meets the eye. It can be layered with different meanings and interpretations with unknown themes of personal identity. The Institute for Contemporary Art hosted a “Design and Justice” panel Saturday that discussed the versatility of the field and representation. It featured three […]
‘Touch of Elegance’ opera spotlights abstract beauty, heritage at ICA
Aaron Royce, Contributing Writer The first act of Richard Kennedy’s opera, “Touch of Elegance,” which premiered at the Institute for Contemporary Art on Saturday, included a statement of the performance as “opera that’s centered on blackness, queerness, and doing the most.” For just over an hour, “Touch of Elegance” commanded the two in an exercise […]
ICA exhibit promotes healing, dialogue regarding immigration and illness
Katherine Noble, Contributing Writer Towering cream-colored sculptures, massive glimmering gongs, sequin-encrusted embroidery and lavender walls traced with silver lines paint a rich scene featuring found objects and vibrant cultural patterns. Every inch of the True Farr Luck Gallery in the Institute for Contemporary Art is filled with intense artistic detail, thanks to the “Disease Thrower” […]