Morocco's Contemporary Art Scene

Marrakech: museums and the Gueliz gallery cluster

Marrakech is the engine of Morocco's contemporary art scene. The standout institution is MACAAL — the Musée d'Art Contemporain Africain Al Maaden — one of the most important private museums devoted to contemporary African art on the continent. Set on the Al Maaden estate on the edge of the city, it shows work by artists from across Africa and its diaspora through a rotating exhibition programme, and has done much to put Marrakech on the international art map. Because it works largely through temporary shows, it's worth checking the current exhibition and opening days before visiting.

In town, the modern district of Gueliz has become the city's gallery quarter. The anchor is the Comptoir des Mines Galerie, a leading contemporary gallery housed in a restored Art Deco building, which has championed Moroccan and African artists and helped seed the surrounding cluster. Around it, a number of commercial galleries and project spaces have opened over the years, making Gueliz the natural place to gallery-hop on foot. The exact line-up of galleries shifts as spaces open and close, so ask locally or check listings for what's currently showing.

• MACAAL (Musée d'Art Contemporain Africain Al Maaden) — a major private museum of contemporary African art on the city's edge; rotating exhibitions.
• Comptoir des Mines Galerie — a leading contemporary gallery in a restored Art Deco building in Gueliz.
• The Gueliz cluster — Marrakech's modern district, home to a walkable group of contemporary galleries that changes over time.

The art fair and the biennale

Marrakech's profile on the global art calendar owes a lot to 1-54, the contemporary African art fair that also runs editions in London and elsewhere and has held a Marrakech edition that draws international galleries, collectors and curators to the city. It's typically timed to early in the year and has been hosted at landmark venues such as La Mamounia — but, like all fairs, its dates, venue and whether an edition runs at all can vary year to year, so check ahead if you're planning a trip around it.

Marrakech also has a history of large-scale art events through the former Marrakech Biennale, which ran multidisciplinary editions across the city in the 2000s and 2010s and was influential in building the local scene and audiences. Its status has been intermittent rather than continuous, so rather than assume a current edition, look for what dedicated art events — fairs, gallery weekends, festivals — are actually scheduled for the period you'll be in town.

• 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair — has held a Marrakech edition (often early-year, at venues like La Mamounia); dates and editions vary, so verify.
• Marrakech Biennale — an influential, now intermittent city-wide art event from the 2000s–2010s; check whether anything is currently scheduled.

Rabat and the national collection

The capital is home to Morocco's flagship modern-art institution: the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (often shortened to MMVI). It holds a permanent collection charting 20th- and 21st-century Moroccan art and stages ambitious temporary exhibitions, including major international shows — making it the single best place to understand the arc of modern Moroccan art in one visit.

Rabat's role as a cultural capital has grown alongside the museum, and the city pairs its national collection with a strong public-art programme (below). Together they make the capital a rewarding, less hectic counterpoint to Marrakech for art-minded travellers, and an easy add-on given its place on the main rail line.

• Mohammed VI Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art (MMVI), Rabat — the national flagship; permanent Moroccan collection plus major temporary shows.

Street art and mural towns

Some of Morocco's most exciting contemporary art is outdoors and free. Rabat hosts Jidar (also known as the Rabat Street Art Festival), which has brought Moroccan and international muralists to paint large-scale works across the city, turning blank walls into an open-air gallery; many of the murals remain long after each edition. Casablanca has its own mural festival, Sbagha Bagha, which has similarly added monumental street works to the city's facades. As with all festivals, editions and timing can change year to year, but the murals they leave behind are there to find any time.

The small Atlantic town of Asilah, south of Tangier, is the country's original mural town: its long-running summer arts festival, the Asilah Moussem (Cultural Festival), has invited artists to paint the whitewashed medina walls for decades, and the town repaints and refreshes the murals around the event. Wandering Asilah's blue-and-white lanes to find the latest works is one of the most charming art experiences in Morocco.

• Jidar — Rabat Street Art Festival — large-scale murals across the capital; many remain year-round.
• Sbagha Bagha, Casablanca — a mural festival adding monumental street art to the city.
• Asilah — the original mural town: the long-running Asilah Cultural Festival paints the medina's white walls each summer.

Photography and fashion museums

Two more Marrakech institutions round out the picture for visual-arts lovers. The Yves Saint Laurent Museum, beside the Jardin Majorelle, is devoted to the designer's work and his deep connection to Marrakech, and stages design and fashion exhibitions in a striking purpose-built space — a magnet for anyone interested in fashion as art. It's a separate ticket from the garden, and the two are usually visited together.

For photography, the Maison de la Photographie in the medina gathers vintage photographs of Morocco from the 19th and early 20th centuries and offers a rooftop café with medina views, while MACAAL and various galleries also show contemporary photography in their programmes. Together with the museums and galleries above, they make a strong case for building a day or two of art into any Marrakech or Rabat itinerary — just check current exhibitions and opening days, as programmes change.

• Yves Saint Laurent Museum, Marrakech — fashion and design exhibitions beside the Jardin Majorelle; separate ticket.
• Maison de la Photographie, Marrakech — vintage photographs of Morocco with a rooftop café; contemporary photography also features at MACAAL and galleries.

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