About MPA
Each year, McLean Project for the Arts connects thousands of people with contemporary art through exhibitions, education, and community programs. Across our two locations at the MPA Berlage Arts & Education Center and McLean Community Center, visitors can discover a dynamic year-round exhibition program, choose from more than 160 art courses and Summer Art Camps, and explore ceramics through MPA Clay. At MPA Berlage, Café Monet brings art, food, and hospitality together, creating a welcoming place to gather and connect. And across our spaces and throughout the community, our award-winning ArtReach program brings meaningful arts experiences to K–12 students, seniors, and people with special needs.
Mission
McLean Project for the Arts (MPA) is a leading contemporary visual arts non-profit organization dedicated to connecting art and community. Our community is rooted in the mid-Atlantic region; our mission is to serve artists and the public by exhibiting the work of emerging and established artists, fostering the understanding of contemporary art, and offering art education and instruction for people of all ages and potentials.
MPA is supported through grants from the McLean Community Foundation, ArtsFairfax and The Virginia Commission for the Arts, as well as other generous sponsors and individuals.
Exhibits
MPA has exhibited the work of thousands of visual artists, reflecting a longstanding commitment to bring serious curatorial attention to art being made in our time—and make it accessible to all. MPA exhibitions are always free.
Across both locations, MPA presents a dynamic, year-round program of contemporary art by emerging and established artists from the Mid-Atlantic region and beyond, providing artists with meaningful opportunities to exhibit and audiences with new ways to encounter contemporary ideas and forms.
Our galleries encompass a wide range of artistic practices, from painting, sculpture, photography, mixed media, immersive installation, and more. Talks, events, and educational programs offer further ways to engage, deepen understanding, and join the conversation.
At MPA, access means more than opening our doors. We create connections between artists, art, and audiences — supporting artists while making contemporary art welcoming, engaging, and accessible to all.
Continuum, Artists Teaching Artists (2022)
Educates
Education has been central to MPA’s mission since our earliest years. Our year-round classes, workshops, and camps create opportunities for children, teens, and adults to develop skills, explore new ideas, and build a lasting creative practice.
Our class and workshop programs welcome students at every stage, from first encounters with art-making to focused studio practice across drawing, painting, mixed media, ceramics, and more. Led by accomplished teaching artists, MPA combines high-quality instruction with an environment that encourages experimentation, expression, and creative growth.
MPA Clay
expands these opportunities through dedicated ceramics instruction in our fully equipped Natasha & Mae Iskander Studio. Classes and workshops give beginners and experienced makers alike access to professional tools, kilns, and expert instruction within a collaborative studio environment.
Through MPA ArtReach,
we make arts learning accessible across our spaces and throughout the wider community, partnering with schools and community organizations to create meaningful arts experiences for K–12 students, seniors, and people with special needs.
Inspires
Across MPA Berlage and our longstanding home at McLean Community Center, MPA inspires our community through art — creating places to discover, learn, make, gather, and connect.
Each October, McLean Artfest, MPA's partnership with McLean Community Center, transforms the McLean Community Center grounds into an open-air celebration of art. Held on the first Sunday of the month, the festival brings artists and thousands of visitors together for a day that reflects the creative energy of the region and reinforces public access to the arts.
At MPA Berlage, Café Monet creates another way to be part of MPA. Our all-day café and bistro, developed in partnership with KNEAD Hospitality + Design, brings art, food, and hospitality together in a welcoming place to meet, linger, and connect. Whether coming for an exhibition, a class, a meal, or simply to spend time together, visitors become part of the creative life of MPA and its community.
History
McLean Project for the Arts was founded in 1962 as the Emerson Gallery by a small group of women artists committed to bringing high-quality contemporary art to the community and creating exhibition opportunities for artists.
In 1984, as the organization sought to grow into a professional visual arts institution and establish a permanent presence in McLean, MPA was formally incorporated. Through collaboration with the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, the McLean Community Center Governing Board, and MPA leadership, an agreement was reached to create a dedicated visual arts center within the McLean Community Center (MCC).
MPA’s MCC galleries opened to the public in 1990 and today include a 2,400-square-foot white-box exhibition gallery, the adjacent Atrium Gallery and Ramp Gallery, and a 1,600-square-foot art studio. The Susan B. DuVal Art Studio opened for classes in 2000, followed by the dedication of a new gallery entrance in 2005.
In 2026, MPA opened the
MPA Berlage Arts & Education Center, its landmark new home in the heart of downtown McLean. This location expands MPA’s presence beyond the McLean Community Center, adding three new galleries, ceramics studios for work and instruction, and all-day dining at
Café Monet.
Leadership
More at MPA
Plan Your Visit
MPA Thanks
