The first time David Golden and Annette Cone-Skelton went art shopping together, it was 1990, and they bought Windmills, a large painting by Jim Herbert, a University of Georgia art professor. That was the beginning of a corporate-private collection that eventually formed the basis for the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia yMOCA GA), which this year is celebrating its fifth anniversary, and a permanent collection now of more than 500 pieces of art.
“In putting together a corporate collection [for real estate investment firm CGR Advisors], David had told me he wanted to put together the very best collection of Georgia artists for a corporate collection,” said Cone-Skelton, co-founder of the museum. “He got so excited about a presentation I put together of art in Georgia, he cancelled furniture orders so we could buy more art.”
That collection, housed then in CGR’s offices near Lenox Square, and pieces from Golden’s private collection were combined to form the museum, which opened in 2002.
MOCA GA is one of the first and very few museums to specifically feature significant art from a particular state, as well as those who created much of their work here.
“It was apparent to us that Georgia artists needed a place of their own,” said Ms. Cone-Skelton, co-founder and executive director of the museum. “Not only is it important to protect and archive the history of the state, but Georgia artists are also empowered by having an institution that believes in them. We provide the supportive environment they need to fully develop.”
Since opening, MOCA GA has held 37 acclaimed exhibits, all accompanied by educational programming often featuring the artists or curators, panel discussions, even workshops. The shows have attracted local and national media attention.
The museum’s Educational/Resource Center was initially funded by the Forward Arts Foundation to serve as a centralized source for the growth of contemporary art in Georgia and is available to students, educators, curators, historians and art lovers.
MOCA GA’s permanent collection has more than doubled over the past five years; it now boasts more than 530 works by more than 200 Georgia artists from across the state starting with the mid-1940s and has expanded to include digital media.
Among other accomplishments over five years are:
• Numerous awards for exhibition catalogs, invitations and website;
• The production of DVDs on the lives and works of three major Georgia artists: Herbert Creecy, Wayne Kline and Benny Andrews;
• Major grants for a satellite space at SunTrust Plaza as well as others from the Imlay Foundation, The Rich Foundation, The Livingston Foundation, among others, as well as public support from the Fulton County Arts Council, the Georgia Council for the Arts and the Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs;
• Crowd-pleasing fundraisers, from Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner to the Off-the-Wall Pin-Up Show and Sale and the Art Auction + Sale (coming up April 14);
• A roster of more than 800 members.
Although the permanent collection is solely from artists connected to Georgia, some of the museum’s exhibitions also include the work of artists from around the world, placing local artists in a global context.
Upcoming Exhibits:
• Continuing until March 24, Martin Emanuel, Sang-Wook Lee, Martha Whittington: Installations
Atlanta sculptor Martin Emanuel employs projected light as the main visual component. Sang-Wook Lee, professor of Sculpture at Georgia College State University, was inspired by the ruins of Native American cultures in his construction of Ramen noodles. Atlanta-born Martha Whittington creates a sculptural composition using twine, shadow and mechanized motion.
• On Saturday, April 14, the museum’s largest annual fundraiser, the MOCA GALA Art Auction, will offer affordable, high-quality works of art through live and silent auctions. Ticket information at mocaga.org.
• Genevieve, a retrospective of the life and work of Genevieve Arnold, is scheduled for April 21-June 23.
A major figure in Georgia’s arts community for 55 years, Arnold was an artist, curator, arts administrator, dedicated supporter of contemporary arts and champion of artists residing throughout the state.
Said Cone-Skelton: “The exhibition coincides with the 20th anniversary of the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C., and we’re very happy to note that the National Museum’s Georgia Committee will include a major piece of Arnold’s work in the National Museum’s permanent collection. It speaks to her significance as one of Georgia’s major contemporary artists of the second half of the last century.”
The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia 1447 Peachtree St., (
404) 881-1109 or www.mocaga.org.
