City Hall Galleries
The galleries at Boston City Hall promote and exhibit the work of Boston area artists.
You can find information about the galleries, as well as what's currently showing, on this page.
Current and upcoming exhibits
Exhibits- Location: The Mayor’s Office Gallery and Gallery Display Case, 5th Floor
- Dates: April 22nd - May 31st, 2024
Art should cause you to consider something new or to rethink what you thought you believed. If art causes you to question your assumptions, then perhaps you'll reconsider your other beliefs. A flexible mind is what stands between freedom of thought, and the tyranny of cocksureness.
When I started making sculpture, I used wood salvaged from dumpsters. The satisfaction of creating artwork from a medium that was bound for a landfill is without parallel. It's like alchemy, if alchemy worked. In the late 80s, when I started, salvaged wood was not a common art medium. Making art from reclaimed material is now an unremarkable detail, which is good for the planet, but bad for dumpster diving.
In this show are examples of wood and steel collage. I use the original paint and patina of found materials to create unified compositions. My newest series, Signs, explores one sub medium, the found broomstick, to rehabilitate one familiar shape, the warning sign. The diamond shaped warning sign was intended to be used sparingly for maximum impact. Its overuse has depleted its ability to warn as it fades into the white noise of the American roadside. I am taking this once powerful shape, and reclaiming it for art. This shape is now fully domesticated and can be enjoyed at your leisure.
To learn more about Jeff Smith's work, go to https://jeffsmith.org/
To contact Jeff Smith, email jeff@jeffsmith.org.
- Location: Emerging Gallery, 8th Floor
- Dates: April 22nd - May 31st, 2024
Welcome to this exhibit of the uplifting art of Maria Termini which includes serigraphs, collages and acrylics. Her new work includes creation art inspired by ancient rock art and also painted music inspired by her experience of diverse musical forms. Maria Termini is an artist, musician, and author. Adventure, beauty, rich images, music, and a search for justice are the threads woven into the rich tapestry that is her life. She creates joyful artworks in silkscreen (serigraphy), watercolor, collage, colored pencil, weaving and acrylic and oil paint. Maria Termini has an MFA from Catholic University. She has taught at the Art Institute of Boston, The Cambridge Center, Museo Tanga Tanga in Bolivia, and other schools. She has worked with Habitat for Humanity in Nicaragua and was in the Peace Corps in Bolivia.
Please visit www.mariatermini.com to learn more. Maria Termini can be contacted at: mariatermini2013@gmail.com.
- Location: Scollay Square Gallery, 3rd Floor
- Dates: April 22 - May 31, 2024
Opening reception on April 26th from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Art and Business Council of Greater Boston is thrilled to commemorate a significant milestone – the 10th Anniversary of the Creative Entrepreneur Fellowship (CEF). This exhibition is a showcase of the artist fellows and narrative of the impact of the CEF fellowship on nurturing the professional growth of local artists. It presents an array of works from artists who have excelled in their respective fields and achieved recognition through prestigious awards, residencies, and grants. As such, the exhibition serves as a testament to the vibrant creative spirit that thrives within the Boston community.
For more information, please visit our website: https://artsandbusinesscouncil.org/celebrating-cef/.
- Location: 3rd Floor Mezzanine, Boston City Hall
- Dates: Ongoing
We Belong is a light-based public art installation with the intent to promote ideas of belonging and inclusion among communities in Boston. In LED neon, the work forms the text “We Belong – here – together – guided by the same stars” in a circular format, with a constellation that maps and connects Boston’s neighborhoods.
With the support of a City of Boston Transformative Public Art grant, the installation will travel to multiple Boston neighborhoods in 2022-2023, beginning with the East Boston Social Centers from July-September 2022. Local residents are invited to participate in the project by sharing what the concept of “belonging” means to them.
Yu-Wen Wu is an interdisciplinary artist living and working in Boston. Born in Taipei, Taiwan, Wu’s subjectivity as an immigrant is central to her artwork. Arriving in the United States at an early age, her experiences have shaped her work in areas of migration—examining issues of displacement, arrival, assimilation, and the shape of identity in a new country. Passionate about data, mapping, and its storytelling, Wu’s work lies at the crossroads of art, science, politics, and social issues. Her wide range of projects include large-scale drawings, sculpture, site- specific video installations, community-engaged practices, and public art. Wu has been awarded numerous grants, exhibited nationally and internationally. Her work is included in several private and public collections.
The Mayor's Poetry Program is an annual program in which Boston residents are invited to submit poems to be displayed throughout City Hall and in an online gallery for one year. The theme for 2023, selected by Poet Laureate Porsha Olayiwola, was "Love".
All poems are displayed next to the elevators on the south side of Boston City Hall. On the fifth floor, there is only one poem displayed on the wall to the left of the Mayor's Office reception area.
First floor- "Facetime" by Vivienne Shalom
- "Love in Downtown Crossing" by Ann Doyle
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"Boston: Mother to the World Behind My Ears" by Clementine Zei
- "I Want to Lay Alone With Love" by Zofia Provizer
- "Jefferson Avenue" by Tashanna Edwards
- "a calendar of solar and lunar eclipses" by Emily Li
- "On Deserving" by Naomi Westwater
- "In Memory of My Wounded Survivor" by Rachel Hammerman
- "Carrots" by Fatima Seck
- "Photographs" by Marsha Kaminsky
- "Boston Grocery Store" by Allison Tervo
- "On a walk in the neighborhood without my son" by Ariel Friedman
- "The Quiet Lake" by Harry Yu
- "When We Were Young" by Mayank Chugh
- "For the Ones I Am (Re)membering" by CoCo Rosenberg
Gallery locations
Mayor's Art Gallery
The Mayor's Gallery exhibits work by Boston area artists who have received recognition for their artwork through grants, awards and other types of public display.
Directions: It's located on the 5th floor of City Hall. From City Hall Plaza or Congress St. entrances, take South Elevators to the 5th floor, follow signs to Mayor's Office: signage marks the gallery entrance. If you are planning to attend an opening you must enter from Congress Street.
Mayor’s Neighborhood Gallery
Directions: Located on the 2nd floor near the South Elevators. From City Hall Plaza or Congress St. entrances, take South Elevators to the 2nd floor.
Scollay Square Gallery
The Scollay Square Gallery showcases the many arts organizations and artists community groups that support local artists throughout the City.
Directions: It's located on the 3rd floor/main lobby of City Hall. When entering from Congress St, take elevators to 3rd floor, proceed through lobby, passing the information desk on your right. The gallery is ahead of you. When entering from City Hall Plaza, proceed through lobby, passing the information desk on your right. The gallery is ahead of you. Signage marks the gallery entrance. If you are planning to attend an opening you must enter from Congress Street.
The Emerging GalleryThis is the newest of City Hall's galleries. It showcases Boston's up and coming artists.
Directions: It is located on the 8th floor of City Hall. When entering from Congress Street or Cambridge Street, take the elevators to the 8th floor. The gallery is in the hallway to the left of Room 801, which is perpendicular to the elevators.
Videos
Maya Erdelyi's Gallery Tour
Artist Maya Erdelyi gives a tour of her show in the Mayor's Gallery and her mural on the 8th floor.
Real F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Artist Talk with Jamaal Eversley and Beacon Gallery
This exhibit was on display in the Mayor's Gallery of Boston City Hall from November - December 2020.
Recurring Programs
Fay Chandler Emerging Artist Awards
These annual awards recognize fresh, original and contemporary works of art created by Boston artists.
National Arts Program
The City of Boston's National Arts Program invites City of Boston employees and their immediate family members to submit artwork every year.
Gallery Highlights
Re-imagine City Hall
In honor of Boston City Hall’s 50th anniversary in February 2019, we sent out a call artists to reimagine and redesign the exterior of City Hall.
National Arts Program 2018
As part of this program, City of Boston employees and immediate family members were invited to display their art.
'Alone Together: Photos' by Jerry Russo
An examination of people while confined to the crowded spaces of the MBTA.
Boston Public Schools Youth Arts Month Festival
Each year we showcase the work of young Boston Public Schools artists from across the district.
'The Art of Science'
"The Art of Science" featured artists who work in new media, including Michael Moss and Claudia Ravaschiere's piece "Precious", an interactive mixed-media sound installation.
'A Summer Proposal'
Paul C. Ha invited eight Boston and Cambridge-based artists to create work for Boston City Hall, keeping in mind the building's architecture.
