Image: Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles ; adam conte 691px
The Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles will present 'Speaking in Tongues' from April 4 to August 23, 2026, bringing together an intergenerational and international group of contemporary artists whose work engages the spiritual through art. The exhibition is described by ICA LA as a presentation of both new and pre-existing works that explore the sacred and the divine through embodied and ecstatic forms of expression, ritual, and translation. Its curatorial framing places Indigenous and diasporic artists from the Global South at the center of the project.
According to ICA LA, the exhibition arrives at a moment when religion is increasingly used as an instrument of division. In response, 'Speaking in Tongues' is positioned as a celebration of the spiritual as a means of survival, kinship, and communion. The museum says the show traces shared connections across geographies, cultures, and time, while also broadening ideas of what sacred practice can look like in contemporary art.
Raven Chacon and Candice Hopkins are among the featured artists. ICA LA highlights Chacon’s work as a key part of the exhibition’s engagement with communication, interpretation, and translation. In the museum’s materials, Chacon’s practice is linked to graphic scores and to forms of listening that extend beyond conventional music. The newsletter spotlight devoted to Chacon describes him as a Diné composer, musician, and installation artist from Fort Defiance, Navajo Nation, and notes that his work crosses sound, visual art, and performance.
One of Chacon’s works in the exhibition is 'Compass' (2021), a mural-sized score painted on ICA LA’s 7th Street facade. The score is for solo electric guitar and is intended to be performed outdoors. Its imagery references the four cardinal directions and their significance within Diné cosmology. ICA LA says guitarist Andrew Tholl will activate the work on the exhibition’s closing day, Sunday, August 23, at 4 pm. The museum adds that the guitarist is invited to respond to the surrounding environment, so that no performance will duplicate a previous one.
Inside the galleries, Chacon and Hopkins’ 'Codetalker' (2026) extends the exhibition’s attention to language and survival. ICA LA says the work is inspired by the history of the Navajo Code Talkers during World War II and combines hand-drawn iconography with the Diné language. The score is activated sonically by a recording that plays daily at The Chapter House, a women-led Indigenous arts organization in Historic Filipinotown. The museum’s newsletter says the audio is spoken by Melvatha Chee and can also be experienced at that venue.
'Speaking in Tongues' also includes an exhibition guide in English and Spanish, a guide to Chacon’s 'Compass', and a related public program on August 8 at The Chapter House titled 'Give an Elder (in Training) a Mic: Beading & Conversation'. ICA LA lists further events tied to the exhibition, including performances, workshops, talks, and tours running through the summer. Featured artists named on the exhibition page include Marwa Abdul-Rahman, Gloria E. Anzaldúa, Ron Athey and Carmina Escobar, Belkis Ayón, Jesse Chun, Asher Hartman in collaboration with Jasmine Orpilla, iris yirei hu, Hanna Hur, Việt Lê, Karen Lofgren, Tiona Nekkia McClodden, Na Mira and lexi welch, Senga Nengudi, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, Aki Onda, Lydia Ourahmane, Fazal Rizvi, Carlos Villa, and Luis Fernando Zapata.
