Collection: MoCHA Collection - Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art Collection

Description: The Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art (MoCHA) was born from the rise of multiculturalism in 1985, as an alternative museum in SoHo that showcased the art of Latin American and Latino artists under-represented in mainstream institutions. MoCHA operated under the umbrella of Friends of Puerto Rico, Inc. (FOPR), a non-profit organization founded and incorporated in 1956.  From 1975 to 1984, FOPR administered the Cayman Gallery, which in its lifetime was the only non-commercial Hispanic arts center in the mainstream of American Art. Despite its short existence, MoCHA helped launch the career of numerous artists who became successful in the nineties. After it closed in 1990, its archival records were housed at Hostos Community College in an effort to preserve them. These invaluable records document the history of the museum and the early careers of many Latino and Latin American artists it exhibited. Primary sources include exhibition and artist files, recorded symposia of public programs organized by the museum, and exhibition catalogs.