Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts Opens Doors in New Location in Grand Rapids
UICA has reopened after being closed nearly a year and a half, and opens it’s doors to a new home that extends throughout the 111-year-old architecture, and activates the outdoor grounds and auxiliary spaces outside of the traditional galleries. The decorative arts corridor will now serve as a living room-style area with comfortable gathering places to sit, meet, read, or work while surrounded by art.
As a collaboration between UICA and KCAD, shopUICA is designed to serve as part gallery shop, part college bookstore. With a commitment to supporting local and regional artists and designers, shopUICA will carry an array of unique gifts and wares alongside a selection of art supplies and opportunities for KCAD students to sell their work.
UICA’s gallery admission and membership program are now free, reinforcing the arts organization’s mission to creating an equitable, inclusive culture and community.
Led by Director of Curatorial Michele Bosak, UICA’s opening exhibitions respond to the building’s unique spaces in ways that focus on the interconnectedness of space, identity, and human experience.
The Art of Living Together is a large-scale outdoor site-specific installation designed by architect Brian Petrone from Evanston, IL. The work, which activates the exterior of the building with monochromatic colored spheres, focuses on community engagement, celebrating new beginnings, and welcoming passersby to the new space. On view to the public through May 7, 2023.
Other World, a juried group show, includes a mix of invitational and submitted works from 13 local and national artists. The exhibition seeks to reframe what’s possible for Queer, Trans, and BIPOC people through stories of alternate futures and worlds created on their own terms. On view in the galleries through December 11, 2021.
Whereabouts features three site-specific installations intended to recontextualize the space in the building’s lobby, decorative arts corridors, and decorative arts display cases. The show considers a nuanced understanding of art, design, and craft while pushing either conceptual or material boundaries. On view through July 30, 2022.
The Way Forward showcases three artists who are taking the time to process and experience how they move through this world, providing an in-depth view into their creative practices. The invitational exhibition aims to provide artists support and platforms to amplify their voices as they intentionally build spaces that shift perceptions and enact social change. On view in the galleries through November 25, 2021.
UICA will host a Grand Reopening Celebration on September 9, 2021 from 5-7p.m. For more information, please visit uica.org.
