We’re proud to announce that the next release on MASS MoCA Records, “Pieces of Light” composed by Alyssa Weinberg and performed by visionary cellist Gabriel Cabezas, will be released on October 2!

The composition is a meditation on the properties of light, altered perception, and hallucinatory experiences. Inspired the work of American visual artist and long-term MASS MoCA artist James Turrell and his manipulation of light as an artistic medium, this collection of miniatures explores parallel acoustic phenomena, marveling at the intangibility of both light and sound, their rejection of the concrete and the real, and the sensorial power they wield over our human experience.

Experience the first single from the record and pre-order the vinyl from R&D at the link in our bio ✨

This National Roller Coaster Day, we’re taking a closer look at EJ Hill’s 2022 exhibition “Brake Run Helix,” in which Hill inverted the experience of riding a roller coaster, transforming it from a shared ritual of joy and terror into an individual performance.

For Hill, roller coasters are public monuments to the possibility of attaining joy — which, as he notes, is “a critical component of social equity.” Focusing on everyday experiences that intermingle with public struggle, endurance, trauma, and joy, whether within athletics, religion, the American education system, or amusement parks. Hill often incorporates his physical presence by performing as part of these projects, explaining that “my body holds the echo or remnant of something,” and works towards a future that elevates those who are frequently not seen and heard.

While one person rode the roller coaster “Brava!” at a time, the coaster’s single cart emerged from behind a two-story velvet stage curtain, moved across the pink tracks, and ultimately came to rest on the wooden stage, while onlookers observed from below.

Roopa Vasudevan’s “False Idols,” installed in “Technologies of Relation,” enshrines three different types of algorithms — Clustering Algorithm, Neural Networks, and Bayes Classifier — in stained glass. The works visualize the ever-present but invisible forces that shape our daily lives, from what news we read to who we date. The use of stained glass, resembling windows that one might encounter in a place of worship, suggests that, for many, technology has taken on both the mystery and power of a religion. With the works` title, however, Vasudevan suggests that such faith is misplaced.

Join Vasudevan and MASS MoCA’s Museum Educators this Saturday, August 15 at 10:30am for a special edition of Family Storytime taking place in “Technologies of Relation!"

Tickets are officially on sale to catch acclaimed New Yorker cartoonists Roz Chast and Jason Adam Katzenstein in conversation about their new book, "The Two Saddest Kitchens: A Comics Conversation" on October 17 in the Hunter Center!

In "The Two Saddest Kitchens," the kitchen is the “heart of the home,” or at least it’s supposed to be. The book pulls back the curtain on our hilarious, all-too-relatable kitchen realities, in a work in which "everyone not named Martha Stewart will recognize themselves" according to Ruth Reichl.

In honor of National Book Lovers Day, we’re highlighting the upcoming Book Talks at MASS MoCA’s Research & Development Store throughout August and September!

Save your seat and join political cartoonist Ben Passmore as he takes us through a boisterous, darkly funny, and sobering march through Black militant history in “Black Arms to Hold You Up,” dive into the history of typography with Kelli Anderson’s “Alphabet in Motion,” brush up on your writing skills with Lucy Ives’ “three six five,” and celebrate newly released titles “The Emilys” and “Daytime Moon” by Heather Abel and Kerri Schlottman.

As “Jeffrey Gibson: POWER FULL BECAUSE WE’RE DIFFERENT” enters its final month on view, we’re reflecting on the many collaborative activations and performances that have shaped the exhibition over the past 18 months.

From unforgettable performances by Takiaya Reed and ANOHNI during the exhibition’s Opening Celebration in 2024 to the recent audio takeover, “CHOPPED”, by Halifax-based Two-Spirit Cree transfemme artist Arielle Twist, the exhibition has become a vibrant gathering place for artists, musicians, performers, and audiences to connect, celebrate, and amplify Indigenous voices and experiences.

“Jeffrey Gibson: POWER FULL BECAUSE WE’RE DIFFERENT” is on view through September 7. Plan your visit and experience this captivating exhibition before it closes.

MASS MoCA members and visitors are always chic, but here’s a reminder of why supporting the arts will never go out of style.

Three weeks of gallery concerts summed up in five photos — the Bang on a Can fellows and faculty have truly activated every corner of the campus during their time at MASS MoCA!

Join us for LOUD Weekend, starting tonight, July 30, to witness over 70 groundbreaking musicians from around the world as they give shape to new sounds during this three-day, super-mix of experimental music.