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Institute of Contemporary Arts
Together we can do more!

The ICA plays an iconic historical and contemporary role as a think tank of tomorrow – we believe that culture not only can but must speak to the world in which we live. 

In 1947, opening our first exhibition, Sir Herbert Read – poet, art historian, anarchist and the first President of the ICA Board – described the institute as a ‘workshop’ and ‘a daring experiment’. 

In spring 1968, when we relocated to the heart of the establishment on The Mall, then-Director Michael Kustow defined the ICA as ‘a free space in which the deepest questions that concern us as individuals and society can be explored in continuity … a sustained enquiry into the roots of our present possibilities and discontents.’

Today, the ICA continues to evolve this historic proposition as an ideas-led institute: leading on conversations that respond to a world in crisis; continuing to critically challenge the status quo; defending the freedom to experiment and think aloud together in public; addressing the opportunities and pitfalls of globalisation; speaking out against re-emerging nationalism and populism; building new threads of and for solidarity towards a new sense of community; defending the values of a civic society; and resisting the forces of rampant capitalism and the ecological crisis it has produced.

We believe, as an equitable cultural organisation, that we must lead by example – and that our hybrid, interconnected approach to culture is perfectly positioned to speak to the challenges ahead, not least in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, by platforming ideas for a world in which we would actually like to live. 

Over the past 40 years, we have seen the dismantling of the entire public sector – today, the ICA receives just 22% of its income through public funding. We have witnessed the gentrification of cities and we have also seen the gentrification of minds. If we are to evolve as a society, we need organisations that think beyond quick returns and that are built around shared values, not just shareholder values. We need the sustained, continued and daring experiment that is the ICA.

Stefan Kalmár
Executive Director 

Join today

Join the ICA today from just £10 a month.

You’ll get unique access to our programmes, plus discounts and special invitations – while also supporting the mission of London’s most progressive, radical and dynamic cultural institution.

Choose from three levels of membership – and for all members, access to our online programme at Cinema 3, our new digital platform, is absolutely FREE.



●  Unlimited FREE access to Cinema 3, the ICA’s new online platform for digital programmes
●  Unlimited FREE access to all exhibitions, films, talks, concerts and performances when our building reopens*
●  FREE invitations to a specially curated programme for Red members – two exclusive events every month, presented digitally at Cinema 3 until our building reopens
●  FREE entry and priority booking for all ICA Highlight programmes*
●  Pre-sale access to all ICA Artists’ Editions
●  Invitation to our Annual Members’ Assembly
●  FREE Annual Members’ Publication
●  10% discount on all books from the ICA Bookstore 
●  10% discount on all food and drink in our bar-restaurant

For a strictly limited period, all new Red Members will also receive Richard Hamilton at the ICA, 2005 (A2 4-colour offset print on 170gsm paper, pictured below) by artist and ICA Board Chair Wolfgang Tillmans – and if you choose to pay for your year’s membership in advance, you’ll receive it signed.**



●  Unlimited FREE access to Cinema 3, the ICA’s new online platform for digital programmes
●  50% discount on tickets to all exhibitions, films, talks, concerts and performances with no booking fees when our building reopens*
●  Invitation to our Annual Members’ Assembly
●  FREE Annual Members’ Publication
●  10% discount on all books from the ICA Bookstore 
●  10% discount on all food and drink in our bar-restaurant


Blue Membership



Blue is our concessionary membership. We’ll be relaunching it with new benefits in 2021. 

All existing Blue members get unlimited FREE access to Cinema 3, the ICA’s new online platform for digital programmes.




Richard Hamilton first came to public attention in 1951 with Growth and Form, his seminal early exhibition at the ICA, he was a member of the influential Independent Group, which was based at the ICA from 1952 to 1955 and is widely thought responsible for coining the term ‘Pop Art’. Like so many of the artists with whom the ICA has worked with over the past 74 years, Richard Hamilton and his work are synonymous not only with the ICA's legacy and importance, but also with how we understand the role of culture in society. Moreover, the current ICA logo is based on a poster/catalogue he designed for an exhibition at the ICA in 1950.

If you require assistance purchasing a membership, please contact membership@ica.art

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Terms & Conditions

* Offer applies to one ticket per film title and excludes third-party hosted events.
** Posters will be shipped when circumstances allow – please bear with us during the Covid-19 period.