The Museum of Chinese in America (abbreviated MOCA) is a museum in New York City which exhibits Chinese American history. It is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) education and cultural institution that presents the living history, heritage, culture, and diverse experiences of Chinese Americans through exhibitions, educational services and public programs. Much of its collection was damaged or destroyed in a fire in January 2020. After being closed for more than a year following the fire, the museum reopened to the public on July 15, 2021.

History

Founded in 1980 in Manhattan's Chinatown, the museum began as the New York Chinatown History Project by historian John Kuo Wei Tchen and community resident and activist Charles Lai to promote understanding of the Chinese American experience and to address the concern that "the memories and experiences of aging older generations would perish without oral history, photo documentation, research and collecting efforts." From 1997 to 2006, Fay Chew Matsuda served as director of the museum. In 2005, the museum received part of a $20 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation, made possible through a donation by then-New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. The museum moved to a new site at 215 Centre Street in 2009. The space was designed by architect Maya Lin and was six times as large as the old site. The permanent exhibition, With a Single Step, was designed by Matter Practice. In May 2011, Herb Tam became curator and director of exhibitions. In 2019, the museum relaunched their gift store with a new partner, the Asian American retail brand Pearl River Mart. Called MOCA Shop by Pearl River, the store is a "curated collection of items that hold great meaning in Chinese American culture." In the same year, the museum was awarded $35 million from New York City's broader $50 million disbursement toward community projects in Chinatown. The decision has been scrutinized by certain members of the Chinatown community who believe the money was part of a deal to expand a Chinatown jail. Subsequently, there were consistent protests from Chinatown residents and business owners, as well as several exhibited artists rescinding their artwork. In January 2020, a fire damaged the building at 70 Mulberry Street, where the museum's collection was held, with about 85,000 items potentially affected by water damage. While it was initially believed that nearly all of them might have been lost, a substantial part was determined to be "very much salvageable" several days after the incident. Around 35,000 items had been digitized and backed up before the fire. Much of the collection was restored by disaster-relief specialists who worked to prevent mold growth and preserve structure. After its closure for over a year, the museum reopened to the public on July 15, 2021. In 2022, it was announced that the museum would partner yet again with Maya Lin for another renovation "that will cost an estimated $118 million and nearly quintuple the institution's size, to about 68,000 square feet." Originally, the museum was intended to close at the end of 2023 to allow for construction through to a 2025 completion date. However, such construction has been postponed in anticipation of a plan to raise and consolidate the necessary capital. In February 2024, the museum was able to purchase its main building at 215 Centre Street for $51.1 million. In March, the museum's board chose Michael Lee to serve as a new director, replacing Nancy Yao. Later, in September, the museum announced its first-ever performing artist residency program that would run from October through February 2025.

Exhibitions

The core exhibition With a Single Step: Stories in the Making of America discusses over 160 years of Chinese American history and is augmented annually with two to four rotating exhibitions on thematic, historic, and artistic subjects. The museum in January 2015 presented Waves of Identity: 35 Years of Archiving. The title of the exhibit was inspired by a Chinese proverb, "Each wave of the Yangtze River pushes at the wave ahead."

Current

Former

Collections

As of early 2020, MOCA's Collections and Research Center contained more than 85,000 artifacts, photos, memorabilia, documents, oral histories, and art work. The collection covers a timespan of 160 years and includes e.g. historical Chinese restaurant menus, boat tickets, family photographs, and wedding dresses.

Research Center

The museum's previous gallery space on 70 Mulberry Street is used as an archival center and serves as a research center. The Research Center contains applications, such as Web-based versions of gallery exhibitions and an interactive timeline of Chinese American history. The center also provides resources on topics such as immigration and diversity. The Research Center was damaged by fire in 2020.

Special collections

Special collections include:

Legacy Awards Gala

At MOCA's 2015 Legacy Awards Gala, the museum honored several people and organizations for their roles in Chinese-American culture. Honorees were the C.V. Starr Scholars, Hong Kong-born American actor Nancy Kwan, and Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates founding design partner William C. Louie. 2023 honorees included: 2022 honorees included: 2014 honorees included: 2013 honorees included: 2012 honorees included: 2011 honorees included: 2010 honorees included: 2009 honorees included: Previous awardees: