To commemorate the birthday of the legendary boxer and activist Muhammad Ali, we’re taking a look at Vincent Valdez’s “Beginning is Near (An American Trilogy), Chapter Two: Dream Baby Dream,” (2017—18), which images the mourners at Ali’s funeral.

In watching the proceedings, Valdez was astounded by the collected eulogists, a rare gathering of individuals from various races, politics, and religious denominations united in celebration of a man who fought for underrepresented Americans. Rendered in black, white, and grey, with touches of red around the eyes, noses, and hands, this series reminds us of our collective resistance to numbness, even in our darkest hours.

A lot has changed since 2016, but our commitment to free, art-centered fun is still going strong!

Check out these photos from our 2016 Community Free Day, and don’t miss this year’s celebration on January 24, which includes exhibition activations, family storytimes, a chance to chat with local community organizations, and so much more!

Community Free Day is made possible by MountainOne (@MountainOne), MASS MoCA`s Lead Community Sponsor.

Opening November 7, 2026, MASS MoCA presents “Laurent Grasso: Metaphysical Maze,” the largest exhibition to date in the United States devoted to the French conceptual artist, in its signature Building 5 gallery.

The exhibition will include Grasso’s most emblematic films, along with a new commission in-progress, “Cosmic Drive,” produced during his research residency at the @setiinstitute and will extend beyond their realm to include new works — paintings, sculptures, and architectural interventions — that come together as a whole. Conceived as a journey, the exhibition will immerse visitors in a contemplative state that will expand their perceptions of time. 

“Entering my exhibition,” says Grasso, “is like walking into a forest — an imaginary landscape where you wander without trying to identify every species of tree.”

Images:
Laurent Grasso, “Cosmic Drive,” film HR, 2026 (in progress). © Laurent Grasso Studio. Courtesy of the artist, Sean Kelly, and Perrotin. 
© Laurent Grasso / ADAGP, Paris, 2026 

Portrait of Laurent Grasso. Courtesy of the artist and CNCITY Foundation.

#laurentgrasso #metaphysicalmaze #cosmicdrive

The "Text/ile Library" in "Jimena Sarno: Rhapsody" invites viewers into a space where textiles can be read as much as they are seen. A play on the words “text” and “textile,” both rooted in the Greek word "textere," meaning to weave — Sarno honors the medium as a carrier of knowledge, memory, and identity.

Scaled to the dimensions of the Sarno`s own studio, the floor within the space is marked with tape outlining tools like a loom and pottery wheel — offering a glimpse into the process that brought these works to life.

Recently on view, “Zora J Murff: RACE/HUSTLE” is a call looking for an answer.

Using photography, collage, and, for the first time, installation, Murff hopes to move viewers to examine the roots of the freedoms promised by official narratives in the United States through his work, revealing the ways that definitions of freedom can shape or hurt those seeking it.

On this #InternationalChoreographersDay, we’re taking a look at both our recent past and near future with groundbreaking choreographer and artistic director of TRIBE arts collective, Shamel Pitts!

In 2022, in collaboration with Jacob’s Pillow, TRIBE took to the Hunter Center stage for the sold out world premiere of “Touch of RED,” a piece that reimagines the boxing ring from a space of duels to one of duets.

Since, Pitts has continued creating work in his “RED Series,” and will return to MASS MoCA to present its fourth work, “Marks of RED,” an Afrofuturistic meditation on the “womb space,” at a work-in-progress showing on March 7, co-presented by Jacob`s Pillow.

Want your story to shape the art in our galleries? Stop by “Alison Pebworth: Cultural Apothecary” on your next visit and add your buried dreams to the tendrils dripping from the exhibition’s central heart sculpture!

By entwining the previously buried dreams of visitors, Pebworth hopes that their co-mingling will bring them one step closer to taking root, to fruition.

Seen through a recent visitor’s lens, these film photographs offer a unique perspective of MASS MoCA — capturing some of the architecture, light, and scale in analog form.

Plan your next visit through the link in our bio, and don’t forget to tag us in the photos you take along the way!

📸: Chad Daniel Horner

Searching for winter fun for a young artist in your life during school break? MASS MoCA’s Museum Educators have you covered, and are offering a week of free art-making workshops in Kidspace at 11am and 1pm every day from December 29–January 2!

Drawing inspiration from the work on viewing our galleries, workshop offerings include: Crafting Our Future with Nina Keneally and Erick Ramos-Jacobo, Cardboard Collagraph Printmaking with David Waxman, A Lesson in Painting with Donald Jackson, Becoming a Weaver with Beth Davis, and Building Zoetropes with Heidi Whitus.

Signups and more details at the link in our bio!