As reported yesterday, the Soho gallery and office space of the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art closed suddenly this month. A statement went out later on Monday:
The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA), New York City’s only cultural institution dedicated specifically to celebrating the comics medium, will be closing its physical location effective immediately.
The SoHo museum, currently at 594 Broadway, recently celebrated its tenth anniversary. While the physical space is closing, plans are afoot to continueMoCCA in a new and exciting incarnation. An announcement of MoCCA’s future arrangements will be forthcoming by the end of July.
Current memberships will be honored at the new venue, as will table renewals forMoCCA Fest 2013.
And a tweet from the corporate account offered assurance that a new spot is on the way:
@GoogleNYC @Comixace – The new venue in NYC will be announced by the end of the month.
— MoCCA (@MoCCAnyc) July 10, 2012
While the closing was definitely sudden—as we noted, many upcoming presenters at the museum only found out a few days ago that they would have to move their events— the situation isn’t hopeless. MoCCA president Ellen Abramowitz has a background in real estate and brokered the museum’s past deal, so she’s the right person for the job of finding a new spot for the museum.
Of course there are many questions–where is the museum’s collection being stored in the meantime, for instance. Museum staff hasn’t been answering any inquiries–but until any further information is released, museum supporters are remaining positive.
MoCCA may not want to jump the gun announcing a new location until the ink dries on a new lease — I have no official knowledge of that, but it is a strong possibility. They did promise an update at the end of the month — maybe waiting until SDCC is over — again, I don’t know this as a fact.
I was told that MoCCA Fest 2013 is still on — so that is good news.
Long live MoCCA NY!!!