Arts at MIT

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Kwan Q Li's Insomniac/Amnesiac. Installation view, MIT Wiesner Student Art Gallery. Courtesy of the artist.

Learning to Compute Through Art

Student in Introduction to Physical Computing for Artists IAP SAA Class taught by Timothy Lee. Photo credit: Sarah Bastille.

Taking the Long View: The Deep Time Project

Installation view, The Deep Time Project exhibition, MIT Wiesner Student Art Gallery, 2023. Credit: Tim Lemp/MIT.

The Conquered: MIT professors collaborate to create and stage a play inspired by advances in neurotechnology

The Conquered performance, MIT Building W97. Credit: Caroline Alden.

Unveiling the Invisible with Tamiko Thiel ’83

Shades of Absence: Public Voids, augmented reality installation, Tamiko Thiel, 2011. Created for the 2011 Manifest. AR Venice Biennial Intervention. Piazza San Marco, Venice, Italy.

Explore Opportunities in the Arts for MIT Students

Infinite Magazine, an MIT Undergraduate Student Fashion Collective, Issue 9 Chaos

Arts, humanities, and STEM fields forge an essential partnership at MIT

MIT Dome, Aerocene Test Flights, April 2018. Credit: Sham Sthankiya.

COMPUTING AND THE ARTS: Explore MIT works of artistry and innovation

The arts at MIT are rooted in experimentation, risk-taking, and imaginative problem-solving.

~73% of first-year students in the last decade have been active in the arts

An outstanding and growing public art collection of more than 50 works

MIT has the oldest architecture program in the United States, established in 1865

Student Opportunities in the Arts at MIT

Study

Pursue a major, minor, concentration, or graduate degree in the arts

Connect

Join a community of like-minded art enthusiasts and creative practitioners

Experience Art

Explore the galleries, exhibition spaces, museum, and public art on the MIT Campus

Make Art

Acquire funding, tools, training, and space to create

Visit Campus

Art events, exhibitions, and performances available to the public at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Attend an event

Find arts events happening remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic

ON DISPLAY AT THE LIST VISUAL ARTS CENTER:
List Projects 26: Alison Nguyen

Public-Art_Leo-Villareal_-Light-Matrix-(MIT),-2016_Percent-for-Art-Funds_057A5901

Learn more about the
MIT Public Art Collection

View of the new exhibition space in the MIT Museum Building in Kendall Square.

NOW OPEN: The MIT Museum in Kendall Square

Academics & Research

Classes for Credit

Majors, minors, concentrations, Master’s and PhD’s in the arts are possible in many subjects

MIT Faculty Projects

CAST offers funding for MIT faculty and principal or senior research staff from all departments, labs, and centers for the development of creative projects

Extra-academic Classes

The Student Art Association (SAA) provides extra-academic, hands-on instruction and studio experience in the arts for all levels in a range of media

Visiting Artists Collaborations

The MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology hosts artists from a wide range of visual and performing arts disciplines each academic year, exposing students to the creative process and fostering cross-fertilization among disciplines.

Cross-Registration

Full-time MIT students may cross-register for classes at Harvard University, Wellesley College, and Massachusetts College of Art and Design

Cross-disciplinary Classes

The MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology supports cross-disciplinary curricular initiatives that integrate the arts into the core curriculum and create new artistic work or materials, media, and technologies for artistic expression.

The digital artworks of Tamiko Thiel ’83 expand perception of our immediate environment

Nina Young smiling and looking up at the stage light.

Alum and Composer Nina C. Young’s Sonic Architectures

DEEPFAKE: An Alternative
History of the Moon Landing

Earth viewed from the Apollo 11 lunar landing module prior to its landing on the moon in 1969. Credit: NASA.

Resources & Opportunities

For Students

Find exhibition space, work space, extra-curricular fine arts classes, mentorship, performance groups, funding for projects, and so much more!

For Faculty

Support for creative projects, hosting artist residencies, teaching cross-disciplinary classes, and conducting research

For Staff

Access free and discounted tickets to MIT arts events on campus, take a fine arts class after work, and engage with others who share your passion for the arts.

For Alumni

Stay connected to the arts at MIT after you graduate

Visit campus

Information about the more than fifty works of art and architecture in MIT’s public art collection, art exhibition spaces open to the public, and loads of events and performances presented throughout the year.