About

The MoCP is a world premier college art museum dedicated to photography. As an international hub, we generate ideas and provoke dialogue among students, artists and diverse communities through groundbreaking exhibitions and programming. Our mission is to cultivate a deeper understanding of the artistic, cultural and political roles of photography in our world today.

Founded in 1976 by Columbia College Chicago as the successor to the Chicago Center for Contemporary Photography, the Museum of Contemporary Photography began collecting in the early 1980s and has since grown its collection to include over 16,800 objects by over 1,800 artists. The MoCP is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.

Get Involved

There are many ways to join the MoCP community: by becoming a Friend of the MoCP, attending our Annual Benefit, or joining the Museum Council.

Advisory Board

Julia Langdon Antonatos
Lisa Bailey
Michael Belsley
Dawoud Bey
Suzette Bross
Veronique Bushala
Marcella David
Josh Goldman
John Hass



Thomas (Ted) E. Keim, Jr.
Beth Kohl
Gary I. Levenstein
Henok Misgina
Maggie Meiners
Carlos Javier Ortiz
Nina Owen
Richard S. Press

Larry Ross
Lisa Sandquist
Ross Sawyers
David Weinberg
Helena Chapellin Wilson
Robert Wislow, Chair
Genia Yovankin
Danielle Dunand Zimmerman

Opportunities

We invite you to join our talented faculty and staff and become part of our collective aspiration to ensure Columbia prepares students for success in their creative fields through innovation, engagement and real-world experiences.

Faculty Initiatives

As an academic art museum at Columbia College Chicago, the MoCP works closely with the college’s faculty to connect its resources with students on campus.

Faculty Advisory Committee

Janell Baxter, Interactive Arts and Media
Robert Blandford, Business & Entrepreneurship
Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin, Communication
Kelli Connell, Photography
Matthew Cunningham, Communication
Joan Giroux, Art and Art History
Robert Hanserd, History
Onur Öztürk, Art and Art History

Museum Staff

Natasha Egan
Executive Director
negan@colum.edu

Asha Iman Veal
Associate Curator
aveal@colum.edu

Grace Tenneh Kromah
Community Engagement Fellow
gkromah@colum.edu

Heather Owens
Manager of Marketing and Community Engagement howens@colum.edu

Karen Irvine
Chief Curator and Deputy Director
kirvine@colum.edu

Patrick Thornton
Administrative Assistant and Shop Manager
pthornton@colum.edu

Hillary Johnson
Curatorial and Education Assistant
hijohnson@colum.edu

Danielle Lioce
Collections Assistant
dlioce@colum.edu

Stephanie Conaway
Director of Operations
sconaway@colum.edu

Laura J. Santoyo
Collections Manager and Registrar
lsantoyo@colum.edu

Giselle Mira Diaz
Curatorial and Education Assistant
gmiradiaz@colum.edu

Kristin Taylor
Curator of Academic Programs and Collections
ktaylor@colum.edu

Ash Huse
Curatorial and Education Assistant
ahuse@colum.edu

Noah Fodor
Curatorial and Education Assistant
nfodor@colum.edu