Housed in an Art Deco building constructed for the Maritime Services Board in the 1940s, the Museum of Contemporary Art is based on the Power collection of contemporary art, gathered by John Power, and maintained at the University of Sydney until premises could be found for it.
Since opening in the old Maritime Services Board building at Sydney Cove in 1991, the Museum of Contemporary Art has taken its place among other Sydney's icons. Located on one of Sydney's, and indeed Australia's, most historically laden sites, the MCA brought contemporary art to the city at a moment when Sydney saw that the living dreams of present-day artists were part of its busy life.
