Massachusetts Museum Of Contemporary Art

University Museum Of Contemporary Art

The University Museum of Contemporary Art is a contemporary art museum on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The UMCA has been housed in the university’s Fine Arts Center since 1975, after the university began collecting works in 1962. The museum’s collection of about 2,600 pieces from the second half of the 20th century includes 154 photographs taken by Andy Warhol. The UMCA is a member of the Five College Museums10.

Here And There Courtney Barnett Lucy Dacus Men I Trust Faye Webster Bartees Strange The Beths And Hana Vu

Saturday, August 13, 1:3011pm

Joes Field

Saturday, August 13, 1:3011pm Joes Field

Wednesday, August 17, 8pm Hunter Center

Friday, August 26, 8pm Hunter Center

Saturday, November 5, 8pm Hunter Center

Family Adventure in the Northern Berkshires

Baby animals and ice cream included

Not just Kidspace

Explore MASS MoCA with kids.

John Stirratt on North Adams, Wilco, and fried clams

Wilco’s bassist shares a few must-dos.

A history of North Adams through food, walk, and shop

Walk through history and get a haircut.

36 hours at MASS MoCAand in the Berkshires

Three days of mountains, museums, and main streets of western Massachusetts.

Mass Moca Show Opens In April

The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art announces Glenn Kaino: In The Light of a Shadow from April 3, 2021 through September 4, 2022. Curated by Denise Markonish, the show will take over MASS MoCAs signature Building 5 galleries, with a series of immersive installations that create a sense of wonder and hope while issuing an urgent call to action.

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Opens At Mass Moca May 29

Skyspace will augment one of the worlds most comprehensive experiences of installations by James Turrell while realizing a vision the artist had when visiting the museums campus in 1987. The Skyspace will join a long-term exhibition of Turrell works at MASS MoCA, which includes one work from each of the six decades of the artists career.

Massachusetts Museum Of Contemporary Art

The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is a museum in a converted Arnold Print Works factory building complex located in North Adams, Massachusetts. It is one of the largest centers for contemporary visual art and performing arts in the United States.

Built by the Arnold Print Works, which operated on the site from 1860 to 1942, the complex was used by the Sprague Electric company before its conversion. MASS MoCA originally opened with 19 galleries and 100,000 sq ft of exhibition space in 1999. It has expanded since, including the 2008 expansion of Building 7 and the May 2017 addition of roughly 130,000 square feet when Building 6 was opened.

In addition to housing galleries and performing arts spaces, it also rents space to commercial tenants. It is the home of the Bang on a Can Summer Institute, where composers and performers from around the world come to create new music. The festival, started in 2001, includes concerts in galleries for three weeks during the summer. Starting in 2010, MASS MoCA has become the home for the Solid Sound Music Festival.

MASS MoCA, along with the Clark Art Institute and the Williams College Museum of Art , forms a trio of significant art museums in the northern Berkshires.

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Play Dates / Free Admission For Families

When accompanied by kids 12 and under, up to 2 adults per family admitted free the last Saturday of every month except December. Use the promo code PLAYDATE when reserving tickets online for these dates. Check out our calendar for more information.

ICA Kids and Family programs are supported, in part, by Vivien and Alan Hassenfeld, the Hassenfeld Family Foundation, the Willow Tree Fund, and Raymond T. & Ann T. Mancini Family Foundation.

Eight Of The 105 Wall Drawings In The Sweeping Retrospective Slated To Be On View Until 2043 Will Be Restored As Part Of The Project

Sol LeWittsWall Drawing 958 at the Massachussetts Museum of Contemporary Art. The work is part of an exhibition of 105 of the artists large-scale drawings, which opened in 2008 and runs until 2043 Photo: Susan Cross.

The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art has embarked on a major conservation project to rejuvenate wall drawings in its long-term retrospective devoted to the late conceptual artist Sol LeWitt. The panoramic installation of 105 large-scale drawings that the artist devised as diagrams between 1969 and 2007 spans nearly an acre and three storeys of a 19th-century mill on the museums campus in North Adams, Massachusetts.

LeWitt was working in sculpture and other media before starting to create wall drawings in the late 1960s, unveiling the first in Paula Cooper Gallerys inaugural exhibition in New York in 1968, a show benefitting anti-Vietnam War causes that also featured minimal abstract works by Donald Judd, Dan Flavin, Carl Andre and others.

After conceiving the wall drawings, LeWitt contracted other artists to execute the works, which are translated onto the wall from specific geometric combinations the artist described through precise but simple instructions.

Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing 692 © Estate of Sol LeWitt/Artists Rights Society , New York.

The estate has had materials especially manufactured now and, through micro fading tests, we can tell these are the most stable on the market at the moment, lasting up to 25 years, he adds.

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Cities Towns And Counties

There are 50 cities and 301 towns in Massachusetts, grouped into 14 counties. The fourteen counties, moving roughly from west to east, are Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire, Hampden, Worcester, Middlesex, Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bristol, Plymouth, Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket. Eleven communities which call themselves “towns” are, by law, cities since they have traded the town meeting form of government for a mayor-council or manager-council form.

Boston is the state capital in Massachusetts. The population of the city proper is 692,600, and Greater Boston, with a population of 4,873,019, is the 11th largest metropolitan area in the nation. Other cities with a population over 100,000 include Worcester, Springfield, Lowell, and Cambridge. Plymouth is the largest municipality in the state by land area, followed by Middleborough.

Massachusetts, along with the five other New England states, features the local governmental structure known as the New England town. In this structure, incorporated townsas opposed to townships or countieshold many of the responsibilities and powers of local government. Most of the county governments were abolished by the state of Massachusetts beginning in 1997 including Middlesex County, the largest county in the state by population. The voters of these now-defunct counties elect only Sheriffs and Registers of Deeds, who are part of the state government. Other counties have been reorganized, and a few still retain county councils.

Workers At Massachusetts Museum Of Contemporary Art Plan One

About 100 workers at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art plan to conduct a one-day strike on Friday, August 19. Nearly all workers supported the action in a recent vote, and they plan to picket in front of the museum during visiting hours. The workers are fighting for a living wage in one of the countrys most expensive states.

MASS MoCA is one of the major art museums of Massachusetts. Ongoing exhibits at the museum feature works by the conceptual artist Sol LeWitt, light and space artist James Turrell and German painter and sculptor Anselm Kiefer.

About two-thirds of the MASS MoCA workers make an hourly wage of $15.50. This amount is well below a living wage for the area, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology living wage calculator. The museum is in North Adams, Massachusetts, in the northwest part of the state, and many of the workers live nearby.

The striking workers are members of United Auto Workers Local 2110, which they voted to join last summer. Local 2110 is a large amalgamated local based in New York comprised of dozens of bargaining units, including museum workers, the publishing industry and college employees. Among these are workers at the Guggenheim, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney as well as publisher HarperCollins, now in the midst of a contract battle.

Contract negotiations at MoCA began soon after unionization and have dragged on ever since.

World Socialist Web Site

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Second Director Of North Adams Museum

The Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art announces that Kristy Edmunds has been appointed as its new Director, following a 10-month international search and a unanimous decision by the Board. Edmunds comes to MASS MoCA from UCLAs Center for the Art of Performance , where she has served as the Executive and Artistic Director since 2011.

Sol Lewitt Wall Drawing Retrospective Exhibition

On November 16, 2008, the museum opened an exhibition of Sol LeWitt wall drawings in partnership with Yale University Art Gallery and Williams College Museum of Art. The exhibition, Sol LeWitt: A Wall Drawing Retrospective occupies a 27,000-square-foot building located at the center of the campus. More than 100 monumental wall drawings and paints conceived by the artist from 1968 to 2007 will be on view through 2033. Cambridge-based Bruner/Cott & Associates converted the historic mill building and worked with LeWitt to design the gallery space. LeWitt designed the final placement of the drawings before his death in April 2007, and the drawings were installed by a team of draftsmen between April 1 and September 30, 2008. The exhibition was chosen as the “top museum exhibition of 2008” by Time Magazine.

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The Department Of Contemporary Art Today

Today, the Department of Contemporary Art collects and presents art from a wide range of contexts, showcasing artists with many distinct backgrounds and lived experiences, and welcoming local, national, and global voices. As it grows, the collection increasingly represents contemporary art in myriad forms and transcends traditional divisions between media. As curators in the Department of Contemporary Art continue to shape the collections to better reflect the diversity of artistic practice today, they also seek to deepen and reframe the histories of art in our time, foregrounding narratives and perspectives the MFA has historically underrepresented.

The Daunting Legacy Of Mass Moca

Joe Thompson graduated from Williams College in 1981. As founding director of MASS MoCA he has been here ever since. Stepping down in October he will sever ties next summer. Between now and then he will plan the next move. Other than some loose ends his remarkable work here is complete. Magnificently so.

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Massive Sculptures By South African Artist At Mass Moca

Building Five of MASS MoCA is one of the largest spaces for contemporary art in North America. Since the museum opened in 1999 there has been an annual rotation. The results have been mixed with hits and misses. Curated by Susan Cross, the current installation When by the South African artist Ledelle Moe is on the short list of most astonishing projects. It remains on view in North Adams through September 5.

Through Innovative Collaborations Mass Moca Helps Artists And Their Supporters Create And Show Important New Work Bringing To Our Visitors Bold Visual And Performing Art In All Stages Of Production While Also Creating A Stimulating Center Of Creativity And Commerce That Brings Life And Economic Vibrancy To Its Hometown

And if you will allow us to expand on that

If conventional museums are protective boxes, MASS MoCA strives instead to be a dynamic open platforma welcoming environment that encourages free exchange between the making of art and its enjoyment by the public, between the visual and performing arts, and between our extraordinary historic factory campus and the patrons, workers, and tenants who once again inhabit it. That is, we strive to make the whole cloth of art-making, presentation, and participation by the public a seamless continuum invigorating, enjoyable, and inclusive. We want you to feel at home here, whether its your 100th visit to a contemporary art museum or your first.

MASS MoCAs performing arts residencies offer well-equipped and professionally staffed technical facilities and stages, and a sophisticated, diverse, and sympathetic audience for new work. MASS MoCAs vast galleries and expert fabrication staff offer visual artists the technical tools and time to create works of a scale and duration difficult to realize in the time-constrained and space-cramped conditions of most museums. While supporting the production of new work, we also take every opportunity to expose our audiences to all stages of art making rehearsals, sculptural fabrication, and developmental workshops are frequently on view .

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Mass Moca: Rethinking An Industrial Complex As A New Museum And Urban Anchor

Objective:Traditionally, anchor institutions have been thought of as hospitals and universities. ICIC believes that definition should be expanded to include other important economic organizations, such as sports team franchises, major corporate entities and cultural institutions. This case study highlights the potential economic impact of a cultural institution on a local, post-industrial economy.

Major Participants:City of North Adams, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Williams College Museum of Art, Bruner Cott Architects, Peabody Construction

Background:Since the late 18thcentury, downtown North Adams was supported by a robust manufacturing economy. A large manufacturing complex with 26 separate mills and supporting buildings allowed companies like Arnold Print Works and Sprague Electric Company thrive throughout the 1900s. But by the mid-1980s, most manufacturing companies had downsized or relocated elsewhere, leaving North Adams with a vast complex ripe for redevelopment, but no manufacturing uses in sight. In 1986, as local leaders contemplated reuse alternatives, Williams College Museum of Art director Thomas Krens approached city leaders about using the 13-acre manufacturing complex, comprising of one-third of the Citys downtown commercial district, to house large works of contemporary art that traditional museums could not accommodate.

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Restoring An Occupied Historic Cultural Facility

Gilbane provided construction management at-risk services for the third phase of a comprehensive master plan for the mixed use redevelopment of a National List of Historic Places factory mill complex. The 13 acres of grounds in North Adams, Massachusetts, encompasses a vast complex of 19th century factory buildings and occupy nearly one-third of the citys downtown business district. MASS MoCA is ranked among the most visited institutions in the U.S. dedicated to new art and with the latest expansion it is the largest contemporary art museum in the U.S.

The scope of Phase III included the build out of 135,000 SF of interior space, ultimately doubling the space currently available, for museum galleries, performing arts facilities, public circulation and workshop and meeting facilities. Working adjacent to occupied galleries and collection storage areas, noise and dust control were of the utmost importance throughout the project. The team successfully avoided potential impacts to the operational facility through the isolation of construction areas and use of ample ventilation.

The project scope also required lighting and climate control flexibility and coverage throughout the space. New HVAC and lighting systems were specially designed for the exhibit spaces allowing for individual area controls and ability to increase or decrease lighting and temperatures, as needed for current and future exhibits.

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Museum Location And History

The site is a large 19th century factory building formerly occupied by Sprague Electric Works. The site was formerly listed as a superfund contaminated site. When the factory shut down during the 1980s, the city’s economy suffered. In 1999, MASS MoCA opened its doors, and helped revive the city’s economy.

Designed by the Cambridge architecture firm of Bruner Cott & Assoc, it was awarded highest honors by the American Institute of Architects and The National Trust for Historic Preservation. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

A Legacy Of Major Accomplishments

The Board of Trustees of Hancock Shaker Village announced today that director Jennifer Trainer Thompson will step down in July. Thompson has been widely credited for her transformational leadership of the museum and is recognized as an innovator in the museum community. Since her appointment in September 2016, Hancock Shaker Village has grown in size and stature and has been infused, as The Boston Globe noted last summer, with great gusts of contemporary vitality.

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Dispute With Christoph Bchel

In May 2007, the museum became embroiled in a legal dispute with Swiss installation artist Christoph Büchel. The museum had commissioned Mr Büchel to create a massive new installation, “Training Ground for Democracy,” The exhibit was to include a rebuilt movie theatre, nine shipping containers, a full size Cape Cod-style house, a mobile home, a bus, and a truck, before the artist abandoned the work after the museum balked at changes the artist made to the planned installation.

The museum, who had already invested significantly in the exhibit and had amassed literally tons of materials in its largest gallery, filed a lawsuit to determine what its and the artists rights were in relation to showing or removing the materials. Büchel claimed allowing the public to view it in an unfinished state would misrepresent his work and did not respond to requests by the museum to come and remove the materials. On , 2007, Judge Michael Ponsor of the Federal District Court for Massachusetts, Springfield, ruled that there was no distortion inherent in showing an unfinished work as long as it was clearly labelled as such. Judge Ponsor also stated that his opinion would likely not be viewed as setting a precedent.

Though the museum was granted permission by the court to open the gallery, it chose not to and the materials were discarded without ever being seen by the public.