Press Release: MOCA Toronto Reopens to the Public on July 16 with Acclaimed Exhibitions by Canadian and International Artists

All current exhibitions have been extended beyond their original closing dates

MOCA welcomes members, donors, frontline healthcare workers and members of the arts community with early access and free admission from July 9 ‒12 on a first-requested, first-served basis

TORONTO, July 7, 2020 – The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Toronto will reopen to the general public on July 16, 2020 with required advance timed ticketing and new health, procedural and cleaning protocols. Tickets are now available for purchase here. MOCA members receive free admission but are invited to reserve timed tickets before their visit. With the reopening, MOCA introduces new days of operation: Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday 11 am to 6 pm and Friday 11 am to 9 pm with the first hour reserved for seniors and those at a greater health risk.

MOCA reopens with its current series of highly acclaimed, site-specific exhibitions by Carlos Bunga, Shelagh Keeley, Megan Rooney and Sarah Sze, which will extend through the summer. Public programmes, such as conversations, lectures, virtual tours and other events, will continue to be offered on MOCA’s online platforms, with additional new media art content every week on Shift Key — a rotating platform of moving-image artworks by Canadian and other international artists.

MOCA’s new Executive Director and CEO, Kathleen Bartels who arrived in Toronto in April shortly after the Museum closed its doors in March, said, “We are so grateful to everyone who helped realize this moment, including the artists whose work is on view. During the Museum’s physical closure, I have been working with the MOCA team on expanding digital offerings, exhibition programmes, our fundraising structures, as well as the reopening in alignment with our future goals and ambitions. A major step in this journey is reopening MOCA as a safe and inspiring environment where we can once again come together, at a social distance, to engage, discuss and appreciate the importance that art plays in all our lives. We look forward to welcoming our visitors and members back to experience work by four influential artists that was garnering critical acclaim before the shutdown.”

Enhanced safety measures based on best practices and guidance regarding COVID-19 from health authorities and government agencies are in place. Museum staff worked with local design company Whitman Emorson to create new wayfinding graphics and distancing guidelines to ensure calm, crowd-free pathways. Additional measures include hand-sanitizing stations throughout the facility, increased cleaning of public and employee areas, timed ticketing and face coverings mandated for staff and visitors at all times. Health and safety protocols are outlined on MOCA’s website. Visitors are encouraged to purchase advance tickets in order to guarantee entry. More information about ticketing is available here.

The revised schedule for current exhibitions is as follows:

Carlos Bunga: A Sudden Beginning – Floor 1 on view through summer 2020

Carlos Bunga: A Sudden Beginning – Floor 2 on view through October 4, 2020

Dornith Doherty: Archiving Eden: Exchange – Floor 1 on view through August 16, 2020

Shelagh Keeley: An Embodied Haptic Space – on view through September 27, 2020

Megan Rooney: HUSH SKY MURMUR HOLE – on view through September 13, 2020

Sarah Sze: Images in Debris – on view through October 4, 2020

The café at MOCA by Forno Cultura will open later in July. The Art Metropole project shop Clouds & Horizon remains closed until further notice; please visit artmetropole.com to shop online.

The Museum’s reopening plan is subject to change based on government guidance and in response to altered circumstances. Next steps will be announced at a future date online at MOCA.ca  and on MOCA’s social media channels.