Stefan Kalmár departs as director of London's Institute of Contemporary Arts after five-year tenure

Stefan Kalmár will step down from his position as director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, concluding a five-year leadership period. He joined the institution in 2016 from New York's Artists Space, where he revitalized its radical focus through exhibitions by Forensic Architecture, Cameron Rowland, Metahaven, and Seth Price, alongside retrospectives of Kathy Acker and Julie Becker. Structural reforms under his guidance positioned the ICA centrally in contemporary art discussions. His tenure faced controversy in 2020 when a curatorial staff member publicly accused him of co-opting her work and misrepresenting commitments to addressing anti-Blackness, though ArtReview noted the claims were unverified at the time; the ICA pledged an investigation. The gallery reopened in July 2021 after a pandemic closure that began in March 2020, launching with 'War Inna Babylon: The Community’s Struggle for Truths and Rights,' curated by Tottenham Rights, a London-based racial advocacy group. In summer 2020, Kalmár co-curated the Manifesta 13 biennial in Marseilles. Reflecting on his departure, Kalmár emphasized the need for cultural institutions to innovate and adapt, advocating for fixed tenures rather than lifelong directorships. Artist Wolfgang Tillmans, chair of the ICA board, praised Kalmár for bringing international perspectives and refocusing on the institution's core values.