Fall Exhibitions Opening Celebration September 5, 2024
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — MOCA Jacksonville, a Cultural Institute of the University of North Florida, encourages you to join us as we celebrate our newest exhibitions and continue our 100th anniversary festivities on Thursday, September 5, from 6-9pm. Enjoy an evening of art and community featuring an artist talk, live music, the MOCA bar, and three incredible new exhibitions. MOCA’s Donor Circle members are invited to arrive at 6 p.m., Members at 7 p.m., and the general public at 8 p.m. The event celebrates two exhibitions already on view – Fill My Heart with Hope: Works from the Gordon W. Bailey Collection and – along with a new exhibition celebrating the museum’s 100-year history, A Century of Contemporary.
FILL MY HEART WITH HOPE: WORKS FROM THE GORDON W. BAILEY COLLECTION
An inclusive exhibition featuring exceptional artworks from the collection of the noted Los Angeles-based scholar, advocate, and collector. Few of the 56 artists received formal training, but most overcame significant obstacles imposed because of their gender, race, disability, religion, or socio-economic status. Learn more.
EMIL ALZAMORA: STARSHIP ABUNDANCE
A multidisciplinary exhibition, intended “as a nod to the seemingly unending richness that abounds on planet Earth.” Alzamora is best known for his sculpture, where he employs a wide range of materials and techniques to explore the human form, both physically and psychologically. Learn more.
A CENTURY OF CONTEMPORARY
This exhibition traces the history of our institution, which first began as a series of exhibitions by artists of the day, used as a fundraising tool to support public school education; then as a guild; and later as an art museum and educational leader. Learn more.
Support for all MOCA programming and mission based work comes from the Donald and Maria Cox Fund and the Haskell Endowment, along with the museum’s Centennial Sponsors: Lauren and Ted Baker, City of Jacksonville, Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville, Jessie Ball duPont Fund, Florida Blue, Florida Division of Arts and Culture, Joan and Preston Haskell, MOCA Board Alumni Council, MOCA Inaugural Director’s Circle Members, MOCA Board of Trustees, Brooke and Hap Stein, University of North Florida, Visit Jacksonville, and VyStar Credit Union.
ABOUT MOCA JACKSONVILLE
The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2024, as the oldest art museum in the region and the second contemporary art museum to be established in the United States. This celebration year is an opportunity for MOCA to give back to the community that has been its home for a century by presenting groundbreaking exhibitions and programs that will engage the community and elevate Jacksonville as a regional destination for arts and culture.
One hundred years ago, a group of visionary local women artists came together to imagine the kind of city they wanted Jacksonville to be — the kind of community they wanted to live in and be a part of. At the core of their vision for a rich, vital, dynamic city were art, culture, and education. Thus, what we now call MOCA Jacksonville was born — first as a series of exhibitions by artists of the day, used as a fundraising tool to support public school education; then as a guild; and later as an art museum and educational leader.
A century later, MOCA’s mission remains focused on the art, artists, and ideas of our time, with a vision that unites education, creativity, and community building in the heart of downtown Jacksonville. Throughout 2024, MOCA will celebrate its centennial year — looking to the past to recognize the legacy of the visionary leaders and important milestones that have brought us to this point; marking this moment with extraordinary exhibitions and programs that will not only elevate MOCA, but provide a stimulus and create an energized destination for our Downtown to build upon; and imagine the future that we want for our great city, nourishing our community through art and culture for the next 100 years.
For more information including hours of operation, admission prices and upcoming exhibitions and programs, call 904.366.6911 or visit mocajacksonville.unf.edu.
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