Founded in 1981 as the Center of Contemporary Art, our museum began as an artist-centered space and has since grown into a cultural anchor for South Florida through 30 years of visionary leadership. With support from the City of North Miami, founding director Lou Anne Colodny inaugurated the Charles Gwathmey–designed building that houses the museum today. Opened in 1996, it marked the institution’s transition to the Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami (MOCA). Following suit, Bonnie Clearwater ushered in a transformative era, bringing world-renowned artists into the galleries through her rigorous curatorial projects. Together with founding Chair Richard Shack, the board of trustees, and these pioneering women, MOCA’s early success was cemented.
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Through cutting-edge exhibitions and community-centered programming, MOCA helped define South Florida’s cultural landscape and became one of the region’s first museums to collect contemporary art. In 1996, art critic Michael Kimmelman from The New York Times wrote MOCA is “a civic-minded institution with potential to galvanize the city and help turn Miami into one of the country’s urban art centers.” —a promise we made early on, and one that continues to remain at the heart of our mission today.

Throughout our history, MOCA has grown alongside South Florida, championing artists with timely exhibitions that provide a platform for artistic growth. Today, as our city’s art landscape continues to evolve, MOCA’s future remains rooted in a belief that art is essential to civic life, and the spaces that hold it are places for connection, inquiry and possibility.

Our 30th anniversary is about more than longevity—it reflects three decades of artistic excellence, community access, and cultural stewardship. As one of South Florida’s longest-standing contemporary art institutions our vision is deeply connected to supporting artists and the communities they serve while cultivating a lifelong love of the arts.