• About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • The Wellesley (COVID) 100
      The Wellesley (COVID) 100
    • In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
      In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
    • Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
      Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
      The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
    • Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
      Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
    • No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
      No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
      Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
    • No image
      Birds Falling Upwards: Wellesley College Theater’s The Moors is a Must-See
    • No image
      Sometimes you just need to read a YA “Groundhog Day” to feel something
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
    • Books Before Boys
  • Health and Wellness
    • February Student Athlete of the Month
      February Student Athlete of the Month
    • Athletics Update
      Athletics Update
    • Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
      Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • The Wellesley Snooze
    • Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
      Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
    • Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
      Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
    • Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
      Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
  • Miscellanea
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
      Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
    • 50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
      50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Sharvari Johari ArtsSeptember 26, 2014

More than the MFA: Boston’s diverse art offerings

Any arts lover imagines themselves as a frequent attendee of museum exhibits, plays, operas and gallery openings. However, those events tend to not only be expensive, but also a bit stodgy for the traditional Wellesley student. Luckily, Boston is a large city with a large and untraditional arts scene. Boston offers several interesting opportunities for arts lovers that make for a good and relatively inexpensive date night or outing.

Boston Institute of Contemporary Art

100 Northern Ave., Boston, MA 02210

South Station – Red Line, World Trade Center – Silver Line

Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the ICA is all sharp glass angles, a drastic departure from the Boston’s well-known colonial architecture. The museum features a cantilevered glass expanse that hovers vertiginously over Boston Harbor. The ICA considers itself “a renegade offspring of the Museum of Modern Art.” An afternoon spent perusing the contemporary art in the ICA is an exciting alternative to a return trip to Boston’s better known Museum of Fine Arts. You don’t need to be an artist or art history major to appreciate the ICA’s offerings. Anyone interested in emotional and interactive art will enjoy the diverse installations. Most importantly, admission to the ICA is free on the first Friday of the month and every Thursday evening.

Boston Poetry Slam

38 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge MA 02139

Central Square – Red Line

The Cantab Lounge features a poetry slam every Wednesday. There are open-mics for first-time poets and poetry slams where the audience decides on a winner. The poetry slams are based on a singular theme on which each poet performs a piece. Winners of the poetry slams make up a national team that travels the country to represent Boston in competitions. Labored rehearsal and careful vetting of these poems is always apparent during performances. The poets evoke strong emotions, masterfully blending artistry and story telling. Plus, it’s the only place off campus where it’s socially acceptable to snap.

SoWa Market

Silver Line Bus – Union Park Street Stop

460C Harrison Avenue

SoWa, shorthand for South of Washington, is a neighborhood in Boston’s South End that’s full of artistic opportunities. Most notably, the SoWa open market has quickly become a summer institution for Boston hipsters. SoWa open market has three main areas: the vintage and artisan section, the farmer’s market and the food trucks. On summer and fall Sundays, local vendors flock to the South End to sell a variety of goods. SoWa offers farmers’ market staples, including organic cheese, breads, homemade sauces and cold brew coffee. The artisan section features independent, local retailers selling items such as candles, soap and jewelry. Between each section of the market are independent art galleries and boutiques. The SoWa market is a great opportunity for anyone looking to experience Boston’s artisan community. One block over from SoWa is a collection of Boston’s food trucks, which offer a variety of cuisines including modern fast-food reinventions and vegan fare.

Artisan’s Asylum

10 Tyler Street, Somerville, Massachusetts

Near the Harvard Square & Porter Square T stops

If you’ve ever wanted to learn a new skill like metalworking, glass blowing or even bike maintenance, try Artisan’s Asylum in Somerville. Artisan’s Asylum is a non-profit community craft studio dedicated to supporting, teaching and practicing a variety of crafts. They offer classes in everything from Robotics to Fiber Arts including weaving, usually on a loom. If you already have an interesting skill and want to share it with others, you can sign up to teach a class. They have two rooms dedicated to classes and a computer lab for design and building classes. Members have unlimited access to a variety of tools owned by the Asylum, but materials are provided for classes available to the public. Artisan’s Asylum is a great place to immerse yourself in creative culture whether you prefer screen-printing or computer hacking.   

If you’re looking for alternative sources of entertainment, check out http://www.thebostoncalendar.com/, whose tagline “Boston Events That Don’t Suck” is more accurate than most community calendars. The Boston Calendar features a wide variety of offbeat, interesting events by local artists and performers that you might not have heard about otherwise and that you won’t have to pay monumental fees to get into. These include painting classes, dance performances by local troupes, small plays and talks by famous authors.

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous article“Boyhood” movie spans a lifetime in 165 minutes
Next articleComplaints surround Apple’s distribution of the latest U2 album

You may also like

Be/longing Centers Connection and Care

Birds Falling Upwards: Wellesley College Theater’s The Moors is a Must-See

Sometimes you just need to read a YA “Groundhog Day” to feel something

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2022 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top