Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco

Playing with light and reflection, @cacollegeofarts featured artist @nasib.elahimehr evokes narratives of flight, movement, and meditation. This installation adapts the Āina-kāri—a traditional Persian mosaic technique often used within architectural spaces. Elahimehr hand cuts each piece of glass, then strategically pushes each piece at an angle to create undulating geometric landscapes. She invites viewers to engage in a process of self-reflection, to see ourselves and see within ourselves. As the daylight in the bathroom shifts, the mirrors absorb and reflect the energy of the space. The slow “flight” of these glints of light represent Elahimehr’s own migration story from Iran. Nasib Elahimehr’s “Ephemeral Narratives” on view through September 1. Photos by @lea_brun0

A museum is the perfect place to work it out on the remix…💚🍏❇️ Images: Exhibition view of Suchitra Mattai: she walked in reverse and found their songs. Photos by @lea_brun0

Our summer @cacollegeofarts featured artist Ashley Spencer interrupts the ICA SF bathroom sightlines, forcing the viewer to consider their respect for the Black body. “DON’T TOUCH MY HAIR” provokes us to either avoid Spencer’s hand-braided synthetic hair and delicate ceramic beads, or disregard the title’s directive. Curling braids, beads, and sticks stretch out from the corner and dance along the walls. The shapes create a site of comfort and care, like the ritual of braiding itself. @ashleysartdump ’s “DON’T TOUCH MY HAIR” is on view through September 1.

“Counter Cartographies,” Headlands Center for the Arts’ annual Graduate Fellowship Exhibition, opens on Friday, July 12th, at ICA San Francisco. Join us for an opening reception from 5 to 7 PM.  Cartographic sensibilities can be traced throughout the work of six Bay Area artists and recent MFA Graduates. The artists presented in this exhibition offer up ideas of urban life in haunting and delightfully unfamiliar ways and invite us to be more present in a flux of “previously unseen or unimagined” realities. Curated by Christian Gonzalez Ho @wonka05 Participating artists include: Luka Vergoz @lukavergoz , Dance Doyle @dance_doyle , Tianzong Jiang @tianzong_jiang , Leonard Reidelbach @justhavefunandbeyrself , Oleg Savunov @somthing_happened , Samuel Wildman @samuel_the_serious Participating Institutions: UC Davis @artstudioucdavis , CCA @ccafinearts , Northeastern Oakland @nuoakland , SF State @sfsu_school_of_art , Stanford @stanfordsaah , UC Berkeley @ucberkeley_artpractice Exhibition identity by @thegrlgrp

“Materials play a huge part in my practice. I’m inspired by their histories, their auras, and their use before I found them.“ @suchitramattaistudio weaves materials marked by the past into a collective story of migration and gendered labor. In this exhibition Mattai examines the power of memory in the creation of her own stories: sometimes factual, sometimes fantastical, with divergent pieces collapsing and combining into something new. “she walked in reverse and found their songs” is on view through September 15. Photos by @lea_brun0

In “to love in silence,” Suchitra Mattai details the twin girl figures using a specific technique of gapping the embroidery to make them seem simultaneously present and absent, slipping in and out of focus. She highlights the domestic nature of this scene by including her own family wedding saris and table runners. Frequently employing symmetry and then intentionally disrupting it, Mattai engages with tradition while breaking it, making space to repair and rebuild. “to love in silence” Is featured in @suchitramattaistudio ’s exhibition “she walked in reverse and found their songs,” on view through September 15. Images:to love in silence, 2024. Courtesy the artist and Roberts Projects. Photos by @lea_brun0

A very happy #FathersDay to all the fatherly figures in you life! Drop-in today for some fun arts and crafts to kick off your day 🖍️🎨

On view: In collaboration with @cacollegeofarts , ICA SF invited CCA graduate fine arts students @ashleysartdump and @nasib.elahimehr to propose creative exhibitions in the ICA SF bathrooms. 🟠 “Lamentation” by Ashley Spencer is a halo-like mobile hanging from a lovingly hand-braided lock of hair. The mobile spins slowly on its axis, inviting us to look up and in, while the braid roots it into the architecture of the space. ⚪️ Playing with light and reflection, “Ephemeral Narratives“ by Nasib Elahimehr evokes narratives of flight, movement, and meditation. This installation adapts the Āina-kāri—a traditional Persian mosaic technique often used within architectural spaces. These site-specific installations are on view through September 1st. This project is organized by @samanthahiura , ICA SF Curatorial Fellow, CCA MA Curatorial Practice & MA Visual Critical Studies ‘25. Photos by @lea_brun0

Thank you to all our visitors, collaborators, and supporters who made the opening of @suchitramattaistudio ’s she walked in reverse and found their songs so special! 📸 by: NICHOLAS LEA BRUNO ( @lea_brun0 )

We welcomed @risdalumni for our first exhibition tour of @suchitramattaistudio ’s “she walked in reverse and found their songs,” led by ICA SF Assistant Curator Meghan Smith.

NOW OPEN: @suchitramattaistudio “she walked in reverse and found their songs” Suchitra Mattai was born in Georgetown, Guyana, and immigrated to Canada as a young child. The history of her ancestors—brought from India to work as indentured laborers in Guyana—deeply influences her practice. Using techniques passed down through generations, she weaves materials marked by the past into a collective story of migration and gendered labor. In this exhibition Mattai turns inward, examining the power of memory in the creation of her own stories: sometimes factual, sometimes fantastical, with divergent pieces collapsing and combining into something new.

“the guide” by @suchitramattaistudio acts as the portal—inviting guests into her exhibition “she walked in reverse and found their songs” Join us TONIGHT at ICA SF, from 7-9pm to celebrate the opening Mattai’s largest exhibition yet! Featuring all new work including major site-specific installations. This event is Free and open to the public, walk-ins welcome.