Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art (New York, N.Y.)

The Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art (MoCHA) was born in 1985 from the rise of Multiculturalism, as an alternative museum in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. Its objective was to showcase the work of Hispanic artists who were underrepresented by mainstream institutions. MoCHA operated under the umbrella of Friends of Puerto Rico (FORP), a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering Puerto Rican and Latino culture and identity. From 1974 to 1984, FORP administered MoCHA's predecessor, the Cayman Gallery, which was a leading Hispanic cultural institution during its lifetime. The Cayman Gallery was later assimilated into MoCHA upon its creation in 1985. Despite its short existence, MoCHA was responsible for successfully launching the careers of numerous Hispanic artists, and it served as one of the only platforms for the Hispanic artistic community to launch creative undertakings. In 1990, MoCHA closed its doors, at which time its records were donated to Hostos Community College of the City University of New York, in the South Bronx, New York.