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On October 25, 2017 in Brooklyn New York, The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA), celebrated its 18th anniversary of serving the community through the arts with its 3rd annual MoCADA Masquerade Ball held on Wednesday, October 25th, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) Lepercq Ballroom. The annual Spring Gala fundraiser is aligned around a capital campaign to raise monies for community programs and to continually fund the development of their new larger museum in Brooklyn.
The MoCADA Masquerade Ball celebrated individuals who have positively influenced the Contemporary African Diasporan Arts and the community, including Rashid Johnson for the Artist Advocacy Award, Shantell Martin for the Emerging Artistic Voice Award, Opal Tometi for the Social Justice Advocacy Award and The Council of Urban Professionals (CUP) for the Corporate Advocacy Award.
The MoCADA Masquerade Ball additionally featured honorary Gala Chair: Maxwell. Celebrity guest attendees included Lion Babe, Gina Belafonte, Sharon Carpenter, Mashonda Tifrere and MORE.
The MoCADA Masquerade Ball was underwritten by several generous corporations committed to supporting the community. The evening’s sponsors included HBO, Gartland & Mellina Group, Habana Outpost, infor, 1800 Tequila, Cholula Hot Sauce and Viacom.
Additionally, MoCADA partnered with Paddle8, the award winning online auction house that offers museum-worthy works and contemporary collectibles.
During the MoCADA Gala’s VIP Cocktail Reception, guests enjoyed a specialty cocktail menu that featured 1800 Tequila favorites. Guests also were treated to a DJ set by Rich Medina and an intimate performance by Lion Babe.
MoCADA uses art to strengthen community, both locally and internationally. Through exhibitions and programming, MoCADA incites dialogue on pressing social and political issues facing the African Diaspora, and fosters a dynamic space for the creation and continuous evolution of culture. Serving both youth and adults, MoCADA challenges the traditional definitions of the “museum”, using art to impact lives both within its physical walls and throughout the wider community.
Photos by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images
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About MoCADA
The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) was established in 1999 as Brooklyn’s first and only museum dedicated to the creation and interpretation of contemporary Black arts and culture. Starting from humble beginnings on the fourth floor of a Bedford-Stuyvesant brownstone, MoCADA has since expanded from a grassroots startup with a social justice mission, to an internationally-recognized arts institution. Now located in Fort Greene, the museum has established a reputation for cutting-edge exhibitions and programs that cross artistic disciplines and create opportunities for emerging artists. MoCADA has produced over 60 exhibitions and 500 public programs, expanding from the museum’s main gallery to the streets, parks, schools, and public housing of Brooklyn and beyond, challenging the boundaries of the traditional museum to build community and increase public access to the arts.
