ICA presents Mindfulness at the Museum, a new series of drop-in sessions focused on helping our wider community—inside and outside of the museum—to have access to tools to become more aware.

Join us on Tuesday, July 18 at 12PM for a seated meditation with Hariprasad Kowtha. These sessions will begin with a half-hour lightly guided seated meditation. Afterwards, participants will read and discuss readings related to exhibitions on view. The session will end with a 5-minute meditation.

These free drop-in sessions are open to all. No special clothing or prior meditation experience is required. Space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register here.

HARIPRASAD KOWTHA is an actor, teacher, and community organizer. Born the son of immigrant parents from India, he began a formal meditation practice as a youth in Phoenix, AZ. Since moving to Philadelphia in 2008, he has been teaching yoga and theatre to youth as a means of building community, healing the body, and sharpening the mind. In January, he created the twice-a-month People of Color Meditation Group at the Philadelphia Shambhala Center. He also organizes with the Philadelphia South Asian Collective around Dalit visibility, immigrant rights, and union development. In 2016, he and his partner co-founded the Mustard Seed Film Festival, the first and only independent, contemporary South Asian film festival in Philadelphia. He is also the youth programming director of Philadelphia Theatre of the Oppressed (T. O. Philly), a collective of organizers who explore physical theatre and movement as a means to break down systems of oppression.

Generous support for this program is provided by the Hemera Foundation.