Established in 1950, the List Visual Arts Center (LVAC) is the contemporary art museum of the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern t ...

. It is known for temporary exhibitions in its galleries located in the

MIT Media Lab The MIT Media Lab is a research laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, growing out of MIT's Architecture Machine Group in the School of Architecture. Its research does not restrict to fixed academic disciplines, but draws from ...

building, as well as its administration of the permanent art collection distributed throughout the university campus, faculty offices, and student housing.

History

The original art exhibition space was established in 1950 and was soon called the MIT Hayden Gallery, after its location next to the entrance of the Hayden Library for Humanities and Sciences (MIT Building 14). It occupied a space which has now become the Elizabeth Parks Killian Hall, a 140-seat performance space used primarily for solo and chamber music recitals, lectures, and theater readings. An early 1950-1951 exhibition showed mobiles, stabiles, and other artworks by

Alexander Calder Alexander Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, his static "stabiles", and his ...

, in the "New Gallery, Charles Hayden Memorial Library". By 1970, the Hayden Gallery was exhibiting several contemporary art shows annually, such as the groundbreaking ''Exploration'' show, organized by the MIT Center for Advanced Visual Studies under the direction of

György Kepes György Kepes �ɟøɾɟ ˈkɛpɛʃ(October 4, 1906 – December 29, 2001) was a Hungarian-born painter, photographer, designer, educator, and art theorist. After immigrating to the U.S. in 1937, he taught design at the New Bauhaus (later the S ...

. This popular exhibition included interactive and kinetic light-based artworks by

Wen-Ying Tsai Wen-Ying Tsai (; October 13, 1928 – January 2, 2013) was a Chinese-American pioneer cybernetic sculptor and kinetic artist best known for creating sculptures using electric motors, stainless steel rods, stroboscopic light, and audio feed ...

, William H Wainwright and Kepes, and Takis. In 1985, the museum was relocated to its current expanded facilities in the new Wiesner Building (E15) housing the

, designed by I. M. Pei. The relocated museum was renamed the List Visual Arts Center in recognition of a gift by Vera and Albert List.

Description

The LVAC is internationally recognized for the 6 to 9 temporary exhibitions it presents each year in its galleries, which are open to the general public. Admission is free to all, as are most events sponsored by the LVAC, including family-friendly hands-on art workshops. The LVAC is housed in the Wiesner Building, an I.M. Pei-designed, fully accessible facility that incorporates the work of painter

Kenneth Noland Kenneth Noland (April 10, 1924 – January 5, 2010) was an American painter. He was one of the best-known American color field painters, although in the 1950s he was thought of as an abstract expressionist and in the early 1960s he was though ...

, sculptor

Scott Burton Scott Burton (June 23, 1939 – December 29, 1989) was an American Sculpture, sculptor and performance artist best known for his large-scale furniture sculptures in granite and bronze. Early years Burton was born in Greensboro, Alabama to Walte ...

, and environmental sculptor Richard Fleischner, all commissioned through MIT's Percent-for-Art program. The Percent-for-Art program, administered by the LVAC, allocates funds for the commission of artworks in connection with each new campus construction or major renovation project. Past commissions include

Louise Nevelson Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 – April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Born in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Kyiv Oblast, ...

's ''Transparent Horizon'' in front of the Landau Building,

Sol LeWitt Solomon "Sol" LeWitt (September 9, 1928 – April 8, 2007) was an American artist linked to various movements, including conceptual art and minimalism. LeWitt came to fame in the late 1960s with his wall drawings and "structures" (a term he pre ...

's polychrome floor in the Green Center for Physics, and

Anish Kapoor Sir Anish Mikhail Kapoor (born 12 March 1954) is a British-Indian sculptor specializing in installation art and conceptual art. Born in Mumbai, Kapoor attended the elite all-boys Indian boarding school The Doon School, before moving to the UK ...

's ''Non-Object (Plane)'' in the

Stata Center The Ray and Maria Stata Center or Building 32 is a 430,000-square-foot (40,000 m2) academic complex designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The building opened for initial ...

Permanent collection

The LVAC maintains a permanent collection, primarily sited throughout campus, of over 3,000 prints, photographs, drawings, paintings, sculptures, textiles, collages, and other objects of contemporary art. The public sculpture collection includes over 50 major works by such artists as

, Jorge Pardo,

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi-abstract art, abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. As well as sculpture, Mo ...

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is ...

Sarah Sze Sarah Sze (; born 1969) is an American artist widely recognized for challenging the boundaries of painting, installation, and architecture. Sze's sculptural practice ranges from slight gestures discovered in hidden spaces to expansive installat ...

Dan Graham Daniel Graham (March 31, 1942 – February 19, 2022) was an American visual artist, writer, and curator in the writer-artist tradition. In addition to his visual works, he published a large array of critical and speculative writing that spanned ...

Jean-Robert Ipoustéguy Jean-Robert Ipoustéguy ( – ), a figurative French sculptor, was born "Jean Robert" in Dun-sur-Meuse. His artwork had a distinct style, combining abstract elements with the human figure, often in the écorché style of French anatomists ...

Cai Guo-Qiang Cai Guo-Qiang (; born 8 December 1957) is a Chinese artist who currently lives and works in New York City and New Jersey. Biography Cai Guo-Qiang was born in 1957 in Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China. His father, Cai Ruiqin, was a calligrapher ...

Jaume Plensa Jaume Plensa i Suñé (; born 23 August 1955) is a Spanish visual artist, sculptor, designer and engraver. He is a versatile artist who has also created opera sets, video projections and acoustic installations. He worked with renowned Catalan t ...

Frank Stella Frank Philip Stella (born May 12, 1936) is an American painter, sculptor and printmaker, noted for his work in the areas of minimalism and post-painterly abstraction. Stella lives and works in New York City. Biography Frank Stella was born in ...

, and Mark DiSuvero. The public art has been called "one of the best collections of its kind" in a guide to American sculpture parks and gardens. An interactive map of all publicly situated art is available, as well as downloadable audio commentaries and printable brochures covering selected artworks. Detailed architectural coverage of major MIT buildings is also available. The LVAC administers the Student Loan Art Program, consisting of over 600 original works of art in 2-dimensional framed media. Through this popular annual loan program, students may borrow original works of art from the collection for their private rooms or communal spaces. Since 1977, the artworks available for loan are exhibited in a comprehensive September show, which may also be viewed by the general public. Each year, approximately 15 new works are added to the collection and displayed in the Student Center for a year, and high-value selected older works are reassigned to the non-circulating permanent collection. New selections are made with the advice of the MIT Council for the Arts, and usually consist of artist's limited edition prints or photographs. In addition, the LVAC administers a Campus Loan Art Program, which loans framed and sculptural artwork from its permanent collection for display in administration, faculty, and staff offices.

Awards

The LVAC has been the commissioning institution for the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

s three times at the US Pavilion: *1999, artist Ann Hamilton with commissioners Katy Kline and Helaine Posner *2003, artist Fred Wilson with Kathy Goncharov as the commissioner *2015, artist

Joan Jonas Joan Jonas (born July 13, 1936) is an American visual artist and a pioneer of video and performance art, and one of the most important artists to emerge in the late 1960s and early 1970s.List Visual Arts CenterMap of public art on MIT campus
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