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- MOCAD will close its main building for renovations from Aug. 25 through early 2026.
- The renovations include critical infrastructure upgrades and a façade redesign.
- Programming will continue at the Mike Kelley Mobile Homestead, including a new exhibition opening in October.
- MOCAD’s 20th anniversary in 2026 will feature exhibitions by Carole Harris, Martha Mysko and Olayami Dabls.
- The anniversary program, themed “Radical Imagination, Intersectional Futures,” will celebrate MOCAD’s role as a civic commons.
With its 20th anniversary approaching in 2026, the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) is gearing up for some big changes and celebrations, starting with closing its main building for essential renovations starting Aug. 25.
Critical infrastructure upgrades, including HVAC improvements, are scheduled during the closure, which will last through early 2026. The Woodward Avenue façade will also be redesigned with a new public window display.
The Mike Kelley Mobile Homestead, located behind the museum, will continue to host programming; on Oct. 24, it will debut “Heart Land,” a solo exhibition by Detroit-based artist Mary-Ann Monforton that reimagines icons of American wealth and ambition through sculpture to challenge the spectacle of power.
The anniversary year will kick off with a dynamic series of exhibitions featuring artists Carole Harris, Martha Mysko, and the first museum retrospective of legendary Detroit artist Olayami Dabls. Known for founding the MBAD African Bead Museum, Dabls has spent over four decades blending African spiritual symbolism, Black history, and Detroit’s industrial landscape into transformative public art.
Guided by the theme “Radical Imagination, Intersectional Futures,” the anniversary program will honor MOCAD as a site of civic engagement, experimentation, and collective visioning. It will invite artists, neighbors, and culture-bearers to use art as a tool for liberation, joy, and community building.
“As we celebrate our twentieth year, we’re honoring MOCAD’s role as a civic commons,” MOCAD co-directors Jova Lynne and Marie Madison-Patton stated in a written release. “This renovation is an investment in the museum’s future – one that will allow us to better serve artists, audiences, and the city of Detroit. As we look ahead, it’s just as important to reflect on our past as it is to imagine what’s possible.”
The museum will remain open through Aug. 24, with its emotionally impactful Gun Violence Memorial Project on view for its last few days.
To stay informed about the upcoming Mobile Homestead exhibition and reopening plans, visit mocadetroit.org or follow @mocadetroit on social media.