Mission
Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art is committed to promoting innovative contemporary art and thinking. Leading with curiosity and care, we are a catalyst, generator, and advocate for visual and interdisciplinary arts.
Mission
Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art is committed to promoting innovative contemporary art and thinking. Leading with curiosity and care, we are a catalyst, generator, and advocate for visual and interdisciplinary arts.
Anne Smith, A Point of Longing 3, 2020
About
Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art (Tephra ICA) is a non-profit, non-collecting institution committed to promoting innovative contemporary art and thinking. The word “tephra” – matter ejected from geothermal eruptions that lands upon, nourishes, and changes the surrounding environment - emphasizes the institution’s belief in the combustibility of creativity and the generation of ideas and growth that the arts can provide.
We are devoted to celebrating artists and value the power of art to broaden perspectives, start difficult conversations, and consider alternative ideas. We work with artists, galleries, institutions, universities, thought leaders, and collectors globally. We rely on a variety of funding sources for programming, including memberships, sponsorships, grants, donations, and other fundraising efforts.
Our values are informed by the dimensionality of lived experience. Through collaborative and exploratory work, we create opportunity for important, complex dialogue with the goal to Illuminate, mirror, and program for the fullness of our shared world.
Our Story
Formally known as Greater Reston Arts Center (GRACE), the idea of Tephra ICA emerged as the institution’s programs, audience, and impact continued to evolve. We proudly reside in Reston, Virginia, whose founder, Robert E. Simon, insisted that it should be a place welcoming to all people and that it prioritize the arts as essential to a well-rounded life. Founded in 1974 as the Greater Reston Arts Center by local artists and residents committed to those ideas, Tephra ICA embraces the role of helping to fulfill and extend the original Reston vision.
Vision
Tephra ICA is proud to build intimate connections between our audience and contemporary artists and aims to create an impact that extends beyond the gallery walls and into the community. By offering access and insight into creative practices, our goal is to thoughtfully contextualize an artist’s work in the historical canon and advance the public understanding of some of the most innovative art of our time.
Our Brand Identity Explained
The new visual identity program for Tephra ICA is aesthetically clean, minimal, and contemporary. Created by Ruth Abrahams Design, the logo is formed using a modern and unique sans serif typeface, and a slightly shifted angle. The font and style choice speak to the organization’s core goal within accessibility. The angle, or shifted element signifies a change and a frame for a new way of looking. It captures mission-related themes of combustibility, disruption, and can be viewed as an edge, a dimension, or a window. The brand color is a vibrant green, representing growth, renewal, and the generation of new ideas and perspectives. Together the elements create a fluid dynamic between timeless and contemporary and between a flat plane and depth.
Staff
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Jaynelle Hazard
Executive Director and Curator
Erica Harrison
Associate Curator and Festival Director
Sofia Blom
Gallery and Communications Manager
Sarah Berenz
Education and Public Programs Manager
Board of Directors
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Robert Goudie
Chair
Maryam Ovissi
1st Vice Chair
Charles Kapur
2nd Vice Chair
Jamie Saylor
Treasurer
Members:
Ann Barbieri
Caitlin Berry
Elizabeth Bizic
Kerri Bouie
Lindy Brewster
Jim Cleveland
Christopher Green
Dan Grove
Tom Hendershot
Denise Hogan
Jim Jones
Ricki Marion
Betty McFarlane
Lezley McIlveen
Maggie Parker
Hereen Patel
Janet Rems
Justin Ruble
Mike Timcheck
Stephanie J. Williams
Peter Winant
Jobs and Internships
Tephra ICA offers internships for undergraduate and graduate students. Areas of opportunity include Exhibitions/Gallery Management, Development, and Education. Internships for college credit are welcomed. To apply, please send your resume and cover letter outlining internship to info@tephraica.org
Khánh H. Lê, artwork from Day Dreams
Exhibition Proposals
Tephra ICA offers a series of exhibitions each year designed to present a diverse array of themes and media. The curatorial staff is responsible for selecting and scheduling all exhibitions. Tephra ICA mounts solo, themed, and juried group exhibitions, which may be proposed and organized by Tephra ICA curators, guest curators, and individual artists.
For questions, please contact Erica Harrison at eharrison@tephraica.org or (703) 471-9242.
Support
Tephra ICA gratefully acknowledges the generosity of its individual members and donors, state and county grantors, and corporate sponsors. Tephra ICA is supported in part by ARTSFAIRFAX, Reston Community Center, Virginia Commission for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information on ways to support, click here.
Tephra ICA, a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization, follows a nondiscriminatory policy in admission, programs, membership, employment, and contracts. Our facility is wheelchair accessible.