Three MICA-affiliated artists are featured in the Whitney Biennial 2026, one of the nation’s most influential exhibitions of contemporary American art. Organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Biennial highlights emerging and established voices shaping contemporary art across the United States and beyond.
Among the 56 artists selected for this year’s Biennial are alumnus Kamrooz Aram ’01, alumna Taína H. Cruz ’20, and faculty member Maia Chao (Interdisciplinary Sculpture). Originally from Iran, Aram’s work, Beneath the Ruins, is a painted wall that the Whitney says nods to the “rich and complex traditions” of “ceramics, carpets, architectural painting, and folding screens.” Cruz is the youngest artist included in this year’s Biennial. Her work is on display both inside and outside the museum, extending the exhibition into the public sphere. I Saw the Future and It Smiled Back is featured on the Whitney Museum’s Gansevoort Street billboard. Chao’s performance work, BEING MOVED, was presented live at the museum during a series of performances in May. The 82nd edition of the Biennial explores themes of connection, identity, migration, technology, and cultural transformation through painting, sculpture, installation, performance, film, and interdisciplinary practices.
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