The ICA is heading to East Boston in 2018

Eastie is about to get an artistic agenda. The Institute for Contemporary Art announced that they’re heading to the Boston Shipyard and Marina with a new 15,000-square-foot extension project, expected to open summer 2018. The new East Boston space, called the Watershed, will feature a series of immersive art exhibitions, programs and workshops from the ICA, and, best of all, admission will be free.

“Our location on Boston Harbor places us in a unique position to activate the waterfront,” said museum’s Ellen Matilda Poss Director, Jill Medvedow, in a release. “With this project, the ICA will make a cross-harbor connection that is central to our notion of art, civic life, and urban vitality.”

Award-winning, Cambridge-based Anmahian Winton Architects will design the new facility, which is described as a “raw, industrial space for art unlike any other in Boston” that will pay homage to the building’s design and history. The ICA’s Seaport location will also remain open through the summer, and with the Watershed directly parallel, boats across the harbor will be accessible from the main museum.

Medvedow told the Boston Globethe Watershed’s programming will be “experimental” with “a handful of artists over time, one per season.” The project is expected to cost an estimated $10 million, including the renovation and the impending five years of programming.