The MoHA Community

The Museum of Human Achievement (MoHA) is a non-profit, space, and community that is intertwined with the history of Austin, TX and the personal histories of its community members: artists, organizers, volunteers, studio members, program participants, supporters, community partners, and those who have yet to know MoHA since its founding in 2012.

MoHA's community is a myriad of people, backgrounds, and experiences that are central to MoHA's history. Inspired by Jake Orlowitz's "What Is Our Community Wisdom?", this essay describes MoHA's community wisdom: what the community is and what the community knows.

Who We Are

MoHA’s community is a diverse group of people who vary in their engagement and understanding of MoHA. Community is the people, but it is also the things that connect them together: the scribbles and repairs made on paint-splattered walls, the ongoing list of recommendations in the #music-channel on the MoHA Discord, and the greetings to the cats and folks when walking up the wooden steps of MoHA.

The community is grounded in East Austin while also extending far beyond. They are Austinites who experience displacement and gentrification. They include those who live outside of Austin – community members who have moved elsewhere in the US or are based internationally. They are also friends from online, such as the conversation starters and many lurkers in the Discord. They are those who have stepped foot onto MoHA's gravel lot and those whose eyes have read through the latest newsletter.

Part of the community is familiar with MoHA's beginnings. Some still view MoHA as a "secret club", a reputation that was informally established in the first few years of MoHA’s programming: word-of-mouth event invitations, insider-only email lists, and spray-painted membership cards that grant entry into the 200 events each year. This reputation is an interpretation of MoHA's quirky, intentional outreach at the time.

They hold the perception that MoHA is an underground space where only those who are explicitly invited to its secret entrance may enter it. They may feel an emotional barrier (“they don’t want me there”) that prevents them from attending an event or getting involved. Fellow community members acknowledge their feelings and actively seek to ease their apprehension. They help relay the message that MoHA welcomes them in, often inviting them to the next event, no secrets involved.

Others, sometimes referred to as those from “old MoHA”, feel tied to the intentionally esoteric MoHA and have indulged in the magical scrappiness of MoHA for years. They are protective of that vibe today, especially in the face of unfamiliar or disliked formalities: written contracts, sleek signage, stiff language, strict formalities.

MoHA's community has mixed feelings about visibility. As a community that has operated under the radar for years with those who have found both thrill and safety in it, visibility is scary. At the same time, they know that being more visible is how to reach others. They are advocates for the people and causes they care about. As they’ve hung up clearer entrance signs over the years, they ask themselves, “How do we open our doors more widely and invite more broadly, while also protecting our community and what makes MoHA, MoHA?” To be visible is to be vulnerable.

The community also includes those who are completely new to MoHA. They are friends of friends of MoHA who heard about the organization by word-of-mouth or a forwarded email. They are adventurers who casually wander into an unlabeled, tan warehouse, to find someone who can tell them that yes, this is MoHA, and the bonus, “Oh yea, the tortoise shell cat staring you down from under the chair is named Carl, and she lives here.”

These new friends are artists who were recommended by others to seek out opportunities, guidance, and gentle company from MoHA. They are potential supporters who want to support MoHA support weird stuff. They are attendees who just moved to Austin, seeking community and wondering if they’ll find it in the crowd dancing underneath strobe lights, a bubble machine, and a sack dressed like Jack from Titanic. With the many things that MoHA does, they are trying to understand what exactly MoHA is.

The community is also a hybrid of new and old, who discover and participate in different activities throughout their personal journeys at MoHA. They are attendees who have attended multiple Holiday Shows but are getting their first peek into how MoHA operates as a first-time volunteer. They are frequent volunteers and involved residency alumni who are new to being in a leadership position at MoHA. They are artists who have exhibited in the gallery space at MoHA but are moving in as new studio members in the garden. They are people whose relationship with MoHA continues to evolve.

The community includes those whose relationship with MoHA has yet to begin. They do not know MoHA yet but would appreciate the weird stuff and thoughtful work that MoHA does. MoHA is made by and for curious people.

What We Know

The community knows that MoHA is an unconventional museum. They know that MoHA’s space and programs are flexible to the needs of the community. Community-led and community-built, they know that the space is meant for them, and that MoHA is charming and valuable in its own scrappy, beloved way.

The community knows that MoHA is a place where you can take chances and find opportunity. Submit an event inquiry on anything your heart desires, and the staff will respond. Have an idea you think might not work but want to try anyway, and you’ll be welcomed to try and offered some guidance. MoHA’s community knows how to be supportive, caring, generous, determined, and daring.

They know that they are amateurs and experts who have a breadth of skills and backgrounds. An amateur in set painting is an expert in app development. An expert in grant writing is an amateur in wrapping cables. An amateur at graphic design is an expert in resolving interpersonal conflicts. The community appreciates what you know, will guide you in what you don’t know, and admit when they too also don’t know.

When given the opportunity, the community knows how to throw a party. They curate the vibe and do so dutifully. They know that a good party requires collaboration, safety, awareness, and taking fun seriously. They recognize the different ways people contribute: loudly in the spotlight, quietly tidying materials, and places in between. Putting on a party, potluck, workshop, or otherwise, MoHA's community is resourceful and inventive. They know how to create with what is available and make things more possible for the people they serve and the concepts they want to materialize. They lead with critical thought at the forefront, in the act of making and in the act of existing.

MoHA's community practices a culture of care and intentionality. MoHA practices radical affordability in the form of low-cost studio prices and offers of donated event space despite the increasing prices in Austin, TX. They ask you, "Do you believe in space?" and this is one way they say "Yes, we do." They practice kindness, whether on good, bad, or lukewarm terms. Mistakes or misunderstandings are not met with raised voices, insults, or intimidation. Instead, mistakes are met with the goal to understand, repair, and make plans to do better next time. Codified in policies, guides, and heart, they set the expectations and infrastructure for this culture to exist.

The community knows to keep themselves and others accountable. They are dedicated to providing an inclusive environment, and they hold themselves to a high standard of demonstrating respect, kindness, and integrity. They do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or invalidating others’ identities or lived experiences. As stated in their Code of Conduct, “We prioritize marginalized people’s safety over privileged people’s comfort.” They know how to advocate and protest for each other and the issues they care about.

They understand the importance of sharing resources. They do not withhold information from those who seek advice and want to do good work. Even when they are technically competing for the same spot – a residency, grant, you name it – they readily jump in to offer feedback, helpful links, and supportive words. They know that people have different levels of access and different backgrounds, and they know that they are strongest when they work together.

The community knows to trust and stand in solidarity with one another. MoHA’s community includes those from underserved and underrepresented communities who are navigating systems working against them, while also challenging those very same systems. The community is skeptical of institutions, big corporations, and “buttoned up” vibes. They find comfort in being able to exist outside of pre-defined, rigid boxes and define themselves. They find comfort in having room to experiment and kick their feet up. They find comfort in knowing that MoHA welcomes the weird, strange, challenging, and unconventional.

MoHA’s community is apprehensive to change but know how to be quick on their feet when change happens. They feel the pressure to conform to conventional approaches of operating and marketing. Many resist the mainstream because of distrust and defiance, opting for alternative platforms to spread word, and create and present their work. They also compromise because monopolies and institutions make separation from them difficult. When policies change, news is announced, or grimey truths are uncovered in the world, the community is quick to inform one another and figure out ways to adapt. They are a strongly knit web of people.

The community knows that MoHA’s doors are open to them, in times of need or just to hang out.