Memorial Day Open House: Museum of Fine Arts - Boston

Museum of Fine Arts in Boston Massachusetts Open House free admission event for North Shore and  families

The Museum of Fine Arts will honor Memorial Day with an Open House and will waive all admission fees. Visitors can enjoy complimentary admission to the MFA's galleries, family activities and performances. This year, the MFA offers free admission—including access to the special exhibition “Van Gogh: The Roulin Family Portraits”—for Massachusetts residents. Enjoy music, dance, art making, and more!

Events and Activities

Drop-In Art Making: Shimmering Embossed Creations

  • 10am-4pm | Huntington Avenue Lawn (rain location: Druker Family Pavilion)
  • Take a closer look at The Knowledge Keepers by Alan Michelson outside the Museum’s Huntington Avenue Entrance. It features two life-sized sculptures, cast in bronze and gilded in shimmering platinum, which represent contemporary local Indigenous stewards. Inspired by Michelson’s installation, create your own embossed metal artwork showcasing someone or something that has special meaning or inspires you!
  • The Knowledge Keepers is produced in partnership with the Boston Public Art Triennial, a citywide project with many other institutions around Greater Boston participating.

School Group Guide Info Table 

  • 10am–2pm | Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • At the MFA, we believe every student deserves to feel welcomed, inspired, and valued. If you are interested in sparking curiosity and discussion among young visitors, stop by to learn more about becoming a school group guide.

Free Guided Tours

  • 11am, Noon, 1 & 2pm | Meet at Sharf Visitor Center
  • Wondering where to start your visit? Experience the Museum on a free 60-minute guided tour. Led by knowledgeable guides, look closely at artwork across the MFA’s collections. Learn more about old favorites and discover something new! Participants of all ages and experiences are welcome.

Spotlight Talk: Art You Can Touch! Accessing 2D Art Through 3D Printing

  • 11:30 am and 12:30pm | Gallery 170
  • The MFA has transformed Anthon van Rappard’s drawing The Blind Weavers (1891) into a printed three-dimensional tactile object, making the artwork accessible to the blind and low-vision community while also creating a new experience for all visitors. Find out about the making of this 3D replica and get an opportunity to touch it, then discover what the Museum has learned over the last few months of visitor engagement. With Jessica Doonan, assistant director of Accessibility.

K-Pop Random Play Dance

  • Noon-1pm | Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • Catch music and dance from Teen Empowerment Studios. This program, formerly known as B4 Studios/B4 Records, is the Center for Teen Empowerment’s youth-run artist collaborative in Boston. With a profound commitment to artistic excellence, talented young artists from TE Studios create original professional-quality music, performance arts, and visual art that transcend boundaries and inspire social change.

Adobo-Fish-Sauce

  • 1pm | Gallery 168
  • Enjoy a performance by Adobo-Fish-Sauce, a duo comprised of artists Anthony Febo and Ricky Omg. The two fuse spoken word, cooking, intentionality, vulnerability, and joy to create a one-of-a-kind experience that can’t be found in any kitchen or open mic. Adobo-Fish-Sauce is an active choice to celebrate in the face of bitterness.

Music by Tim Hall

  • 1:45 & 3 pm | Shapiro Family Courtyard
  • Dynamic spoken word artist and musician Tim Hall brings visitors an afternoon of storytelling underscored by jazz, neo-soul, and R&B music. Hall’s welcoming and tender words reveal his lived experiences, mapping the nuances of Blackness, masculinity, and life’s many beauties.
When: 
Monday, May 26, 2025 10am-5pm
Prices: 
Free
Phone: 
617.267.9300
Landmark Summer Experience at Landmark School in Beverly Massachusetts

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Pingree School in Hmailton Massachusetts hosts their annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture exhibit each Fall. Sculpture: Phoenix by Robin Tost.
Pingree School hosts the 16th annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on their campus in South Hamilton, Massachusetts .
8:00 am to 6:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Saturday, November 8

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Pingree School in Hmailton Massachusetts hosts their annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture exhibit each Fall. Sculpture: Phoenix by Robin Tost.
Pingree School hosts the 16th annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on their campus in South Hamilton, Massachusetts .
8:00 am to 6:00 pm

Marblehead Farmers' Market

Find fresh local produce and other foods at the Marblehead Farmer's Market!
The Marblehead Farmer's Market boasts 15+ local farms, and booths with an educational spin nutrition, vendors and farms selling homemade prepared goods and craft vendors that are switched up in a rotation basis week to week. Additionally there are entertainers and exhibits by environmentally...
9:00 am to 12:00 pm

Renaissance Faire Day

Return to the Renaissance on the oceanside lawn at Hammond Castle in Gloucester Massachusetts
Step into the world of medieval and Renaissance culture at Hammond Castle Museum, where the castle itself provides a uniquely dramatic backdrop for a magical day steeped in history and fantasy in a stunning setting.  
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Discover Saturdays at Cape Ann Museum

Discover Saturdays for Families at Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester Massachusetts
Enjoy a FREE guided activity (ages 4+) in the gallery. Learn about Cape Ann’s Granite Industry, try a fun art making activity, and join in gallery tour designed for kids and their caregivers, led by a CAM Educator. Afterwards grab a scavenger hunt to explore the property and enjoy the lawn.
10:00 am to 12:00 pm

Fall Foliage Cider & Donut Cruises

Take a guided tour of the Essex Massachusetts Marshes with Essex River Cruises this Autumn
Essex River Cruises hosts a narrated sightseeing tour that winds down the beautiful Essex River aboard Essex River Queen, a pontoon boat.
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Sunday, November 9

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm