marrakech

MACAAL

The contemporary art galleries of MACAAL, Marrakech's museum of African modern art

Hours

Tue-Sun 10am-6pm

Entry

50 MAD

Duration

60 minutes

Location

Al Maaden Golf Resort, Route de l'Ourika

Contemporary African art — North African alongside South African, Nigerian, Kenyan. Outside the medina, requiring a taxi. The curatorial vision is pan-African; the commitment to the continent is consistent.

Contemporary Art in the New Town

MACAAL — the Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden — opened in 2018 in Marrakech's southern suburbs, inside the Al Maaden golf resort. The location is deliberately non-medina. The collection belongs to the Lazraq family, whose foundation has spent two decades acquiring African contemporary art when the market was still relatively ignored by major institutions.

The collection now numbers over 2,000 works — painting, sculpture, photography, video — by artists from across the continent. Ghada Amer, Hassan Hajjaj, Barthélémy Toguo, Billie Zangewa. The focus is pan-African, not Moroccan. This matters. Marrakech has galleries that show Moroccan art. MACAAL is the only institution in North Africa with a serious continental collection.

The Space

The building is contemporary — clean white volumes, natural light, polished concrete floors. No zellige, no tadelakt, no medina references. The architecture is intentionally neutral, built for the art rather than competing with it.

The exhibition space is modest — three or four rooms across a single floor — but the curation is sharp. Rotating exhibitions every few months. The garden sculpture terrace outside the building sometimes holds installations.

Visiting

MACAAL is outside the medina — about 15 minutes by taxi from Jemaa el-Fna, in the Al Maaden district south of town. A taxi costs 30–50 MAD depending on your negotiation. The museum offers shuttle service during some exhibitions — check their Instagram.

Allow 45 minutes to an hour. The gift shop stocks exhibition catalogues and books on African contemporary art that are hard to find elsewhere in Morocco.

Combine with the Anima Garden (André Heller's botanical art garden, 10 minutes further south) if you want a half-day outside the medina.

Best Time to Visit

Any time during opening hours. The gallery is climate-controlled. Check exhibition schedules online — the rotating shows vary significantly in quality and interest.

Getting There

In the Al Maaden district, about 15 minutes by taxi south of the Marrakech medina. Not walkable from the old city. A petit taxi costs 30–50 MAD.

Local Tip

Outside the medina in Al Maaden. Taxi required. Major collection.

Common Questions

No. It is in the Al Maaden district in southern Marrakech, about 15 minutes by taxi from the old city.

African contemporary art — painting, sculpture, photography, and video by artists from across the continent. The collection is pan-African, not exclusively Moroccan.

45 minutes to an hour. The exhibition space is compact and well-curated.

Check their Instagram or website for current hours. Exhibitions rotate every few months.

MACAAL is the contemporary art museum we recommend when guests want to see Morocco's present, not just its past. The collection rotates — we check before sending you.

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