Rebranding the MOCCA, by Ana Crețiu

Once called the Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art (MOCCA), the new Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto Canada will open its doors on May 2, 2017. The museum will take up five floors in an industrial high-rise.

 The opening will coincide with Canada’s 150th anniversary and the museum will house internationally-inclusive exhibitions taking the year 2000 as a start date for its collection. MOCCA have said that the museum will be based on the idea of the ‘agora’, a public space that should encourage an exchange of ideas and debate.

A statement has been published on the official site of the museum, announcing that : "There’s a call for a new type of museum. One that’s open to wider demographic and socio-political environments. One that embodies diversity, cultural crossbreeding, new technologies, and the disappearance of silos in artistic disciplines". We can clearly see the way MOCCA choose to enroll in the rising trend of the new museology. This is an updated version of the classical science of museum, one that focuses on the public rather than the content itself and all the cool museums are doing it.

 The museum has planned the opening of a custom-made building that will add 23,000 square meters to its inaugural venue, and scheduled to open in 2020.

The Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto Canada plans to hold three exhibitions a year to be accompanied by other events. The museum’s inaugural exhibition, Odyssey 2040, will run from May – August 2017.