Ideas of Our Time | MOCA Jacksonville: The First 100 Years

Ideas of Our Time is a lecture series providing a forum for creative dialogue with artists, educators, and others around some of the most vital and important art and ideas of our time. In 2024, the museum is hosting MOCA Jacksonville: The First 100 Years, recounting the history of the museum by both historians and those who lived it. 

During the first talk on June 5, we will hear from Alan Bliss, Executive Director of the Jacksonville Historical Society, who will discuss the cultural and political landscape of Jacksonville at the time of MOCA’s founding in 1924.  

The second lecture, on August 7, features speaker John Bunker, who served as Interim Director and Associate Director of Jacksonville Art Museum, the precursor to MOCA Jacksonville, from 1976-1994. 

Ideas of Our Time is free and open to all and takes place during DT Jax Art Walk. Registration is not required but recommended as the MOCA Theater has limited seats. 

Questions? Contact mocaeducation@unf.edu 

SPEAKERS 

Alan Bliss, Ph.D. – Executive Director, Jacksonville Historical Society    

Bliss holds a Ph.D. from the University of Florida. His research on modern Florida has won professional awards. In 2015, Bliss was elected to the board of the Jacksonville Historical Society. He chaired and co-chaired JHS committees for Strategic Planning, Programs, and Property Management.    

Beginning in 2006, Alan Bliss taught at the University of North Florida, where his popular U.S. history courses include urban history, maritime history, and a seminar on public history—all emphasizing Jacksonville. He is also experienced in historic resource consulting and is a sought-after public speaker.    

In addition to the JHS, Bliss is a member of Jacksonville’s Downtown Vision Alliance, the Urban Land Institute (North Florida Chapter), the Jacksonville Historic Naval Ship Association, and the Naval Order of the United States. He is an active member of Riverside Presbyterian Church, where he chairs its Property & Maintenance Committee. He also serves on the board of Fonkoze, USA, an anti-poverty and microfinance nonprofit serving Haiti. Prior to returning to higher education, he had a successful career in the real estate industry.  

An experienced offshore sailor, he enjoys boating on the St. Johns River and surrounding waters. 

John Bunker - Artist & Community Leader 

Beyond creating an extensive and varied body of work over his 50-year career as a professional artist, Bunker has also sustained an impressive museum career, which includes being the long-term associate director and interim director of the Jacksonville Art Museum and director of the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens.  He is a graduate of both the Smithsonian Institution's Fundamentals of Museum Management and the J.P. Getty's Museum Management Institute UC Berkeley.  

As an active volunteer in the Jacksonville Community, John Bunker has served as President of the Riverside Fine Arts Association Concert Board, a member of JaxPride, Chairman of the Koger Gallery of Art and Gardens Advisory Committee, curator of the Jacksonville International Airport Arts Commission, member of art in Public Places committee, board member of Patrons of the HeArts, board member JAG, and vestry member of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd.    

John Bunker's artworks are included in numerous museums, corporate, public and private collections in the United States and abroad.  Several corporate collectors include:  AT&T Universal Card, The Mayo Clinic, First Coast Oncology Centers, Nordstroms, First Union Bank, Bank of America, North Florida College, Vistakon, The Florida Senate, Riverside House of Junior League, Orlando Jetport, Timuquana Country Club, Stein Mart, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of North Florida, The Jacksonville Museum of Modern Art, and the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens.    

In 2007, John Bunker received the Individual Arts Award from the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville in recognition of three decades of leadership in the First Coast community.  In 2016, Bunker was named one of 40 years 40 icons initiative.  In 2020, Bunker was awarded the Ann McDonald Baker Art Ventures Award for his over 50 years for an ....“indelible mark on our cultural community, both through his art and in his leadership positions at the Cummer Museum and the Jacksonville Art Museum.”