Indigenous Peoples' Day Open House at MFA

Free Admission for Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston Massachusetts

to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the MFA. This year, we’re offering free admission—including access to “Georgia O’Keeffe and Henry Moore”—for Massachusetts residents. Enjoy gallery tours, engaging family art-making activities, and more! Indigenous Peoples’ Day recognizes and honors the heritage of Native Americans and Indigenous peoples and the histories of their many nations and communities.

Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the MFA is part of the Fenway Alliance’s Opening Our Doors festival, a celebration of the Fenway Cultural District.

Events and Activities

Meet Local Partners

  • 10 am–3 pm
  • Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • Stop by to talk with representatives from the North American Indian Center of Boston, United American Indians of New England, Indigenous Peoples’ Day Massachusetts, and Italian Americans for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about their organizations and the work they do.

Drop-In Art Making: Pottery

  • 10 am–4 pm (last entry 3:45 pm)
  • Druker Family Pavilion
  • Create your own pottery inspired by the many traditions of Native North America! Activity created in consultation with Mashpee Wampanoag artist Haley Peters.

Guided Tours

  • 11 am, Noon, 1 pm, and 2 pm
  • Meet at Sharf Visitor Center
  • Wondering where to start your visit to the MFA? Experience the Museum on a free 60-minute guided tour. Led by knowledgeable guides, look closely at artwork across the MFA’s collections. Learn more about old favorites and discover something new! Participants of all ages and experiences are welcome.

Zenni Optical Vision Screenings

  • 10 am–3 pm
  • Riley Seminar Room
  • Come by for free vision screenings and pick up some exclusive Zenni swag. Zenni Optical believes that clear vision is a right, not a privilege, and is committed to making high-quality eye care accessible to every individual, especially the youngest members of our community.

First Light Foundation

  • 11 am and 1 pm
  • Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • Meet Annawon Weeden, a proud member of the Mashpee Wampanoag, Pequot, and Narragansett tribes and a cultural instructor for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation Cultural Resource Department. Born and raised in Charlestown, Rhode Island, Weeden passionately shares his tribal culture with the public. Alongside his cultural work, Weeden is an artist and environmental educator, promoting Indigenous art and education through the First Light Foundation.

Art-Making Demo by Haley Peters

  • Noon and 3pm
  • Gallery 168
  • Haley Peters (Mashpee Wampanoag) utilizes traditional techniques of pinching and coiling clay and traditional tools of bone and shell to create forms that reference historic Eastern Woodland vessels. While being inspired by the making of historical vessels, they often find joy in exaggerating and pushing these forms and methods to extremes.

Community Perspective: Nipmuc Baskets

  • 12:30 pm
  • Gallery LG34
  • Gather with Kim Toney (Nipmuc), coordinating curator for Native American and Indigenous collections at the John Carter Brown Library, to learn more about the MFA’s Nipmuc collection.

Community Perspective: Ancestors and Place

  • 1 pm
  • Gallery LG26
  • Join Elizabeth Solomon and Jenny Oliver (both Massachusett at Ponkapoag) as they share their experiences working on the exhibition “Ancestors and Place: Indigenous North American Prints,” which features more than 30 works—most of them recent acquisitions—by Indigenous artists from the United States and Canada

Community Perspective: Art of Attire

  • 2 pm
  • Gallery 234
  • Join Layla Bermeo, Kristin and Roger Servison Curator of American Paintings, and Marina Tyquiengco (CHamoru), Ellyn McColgan Associate Curator of Native American Art, as they discuss “Art of Attire,” a recent installation centering Indigenous clothing and cultural exchanges.

Hawk Henries

  • 2 and 3:15 pm
  • Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • Hawk Henries is an artist, composer, and flute musician of the Chaubunagungamaug band of Nipmuc. He expertly crafts Eastern Woodlands flutes through ancestral and contemporary techniques. His transformative performances create contemplative spaces for unity and meaningful reflection on how we each have the capacity to make change in the world. Through music, discussion, and a note of humor, he weaves a calm, engaging, and thought-provoking experience.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) is in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1870, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, stands on the historic homelands of the Massachusett people, a site that has long served as a place of meeting and exchange among different nations. As a museum, we acknowledge the long history of the land we occupy today and seek ways to make Indigenous narratives more prominent in our galleries and programming. We can all learn more about the Massachusett people, who continue to be the stewards of this land, by visiting massachusetttribe.org.

When: 
Monday, October 14, 2024 10am-5pm
Prices: 
FREE
Phone: 
617.267.9300
Landmark Summer Experience at Landmark School in Beverly Massachusetts

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Pajama Story Time at Danvers Public Library

Kids are invited to the pajama time book reading at the Public Library in Danvers Massachusetts.
Wear your jammies and join us for some stories and rhymes! Ages 0-7 with a parent or caregiver.
6:30 pm to 7:00 pm

Tuesday, April 1

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Music Together - Tuesday in Marblehead

Marblehead, Beverly Farms, Hamilton, Salem, Peabody Music Together
Music Together® is a research-based music & movement program for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and the grown-ups who love them. Music Together® of Salem classes make it easy for parents/primary caregivers to play a crucial role in activating their child's music development. Classes are 45...
10:00 am to 10:45 am

Barnyard Story Hour at Appleton Farms

Kids can meet the barnyard animals and hear a story at Appleton Farms in Ipswich Massachusetts.
Barnyard stories really come alive when you get to see the main characters in real life! Bring the kids down to Appleton Farms for our farm-fresh version of story time. Explore the farmstead, visit our learning garden, see our cows and rabbits, and find a spot to play under a shady tree in our...
10:30 am to 11:30 am

STEM Club at MPL

Stem Club for kids in grades 3-6 at the public library in Manchester Public Library
Have some fun and learn a little science too at STEM Club! This group meets every third Thursday from 4-5 and is for grades 4-6. 
4:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Pajama Story Time at Manchester Public Library

Kids are invited to the pajama time book reading at the Public Library in Manchester by the Sea Massachusetts.
Join Miss Audrey for a cozy pajama storytime and craft the first Thursday of every month from 6-7. This program is for kids ages 4 and up and their families. 
6:00 pm to 7:00 pm

Chess Club at Salem Public Library

Salem Public Library hosts a weekly chess club for all ages on Tuesday evenings.
Salem Public Library the library is hosting weekly chess nights where players of all ages can play and learn from each other.  Whether you're new to the game or a veteran player, all skill levels welcome, and basic instruction
6:30 pm to 7:30 pm

Wednesday, April 2

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Music Together - Wednesday

Marblehead, Beverly Farms, Hamilton, Salem, Peabody Music Together
Music Together® is a research-based music & movement program for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and the grown-ups who love them. Music Together® classes make it easy for parents/primary caregivers to play a crucial role in activating their child's music development. Classes are 45 minutes...
9:30 am to 11:15 am

Thursday, April 3

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Ukrainian Egg Workshop at NTL

Ukrainian Egg Workshop at the Newbury Town Library in Massachusetts
Back by popular demand! Kati Bourque will present a brief history on Ukrainian Easter Eggs and teach you how to create your own egg.  All materials will be provided and you will go home with an egg that you made! This program is geared towards teens and adults, as you will be handling a raw egg, a...
6:00 pm to 8:30 pm