Contemporary art in Marrakech: galleries, foundations and museums

Marrakech's art scene at a glance

The Marrakech Biennale, founded in 2005, brought in the first international curators. The 2010s added lasting private venues: the Farid Belkahia Foundation in 2015, then MACAAL and the Comptoir des Mines gallery in 2016. Since 2018 the 1-54 fair has gathered galleries from Africa and its diaspora at La Mamounia, and the city's galleries save their most ambitious shows for the same week.

The venues fall into four areas, fairly far apart:

• Guéliz, the new town: commercial galleries, a few streets from one another.
• Sidi Ghanem, in the north-west: galleries and designers' showrooms in former warehouses.
• The outskirts: MACAAL to the south-east, plus the foundations in the Palmeraie and the countryside.
• The medina: photography, palace museums and independent spaces.

For historic collections, see our guide to the museums of Marrakech.

Contemporary art museums and foundations

MACAAL, at Al Maaden

MACAAL, the Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden, is the key address. It shows the Lazraq family collection, more than 2,000 works by artists from Morocco and the rest of the continent: painting, photography, sculpture, textiles, installation and video. Closed after the September 2023 earthquake, it reopened in February 2025. Until 29 November 2026, an exhibition is devoted to the photographer and filmmaker Daoud Aoulad-Syad; "Statues Also Breathe" and Yassine Balbzioui's installation "Crazy Lines" remain on view until 8 January 2027.

The museum opens Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm. Admission is 120 dh, or 60 dh for residents and African nationals; it is free for under-12s and students. It lies about 5 km south-east of Jemaa el-Fna: take a petit taxi and plan your return, as the front desk can call one for you.

The Palmeraie: Palmeraie Museum and Farid Belkahia Foundation

North-east of the city, the Palmeraie Museum, now the Benchaâbane Foundation, shows contemporary Moroccan art (Farid Belkahia, Hassan El Glaoui, Mohamed Melihi, Mahi Binebine and younger artists) in restored rammed-earth farm buildings set in two hectares of gardens. It opens daily from 9am to 5pm; local guides give the price as 50 dh, payable in cash.

In the same Dar Tounsi area, the Farid Belkahia Foundation occupies the house and studio where the painter, born in Marrakech in 1934, worked until his death in 2014. Its museum, the Mathaf Farid Belkahia, opened in February 2016. You will see his works on skin and copper, drawing on the signs of Moroccan craftsmanship, as well as guest exhibitions: the latest, a carte blanche to the painter Mohamed Mourabiti, dates from winter 2025. The foundation opens daily from 9am to 6pm, but visits must be booked in advance through the form on its website. The two venues fit into half a day with the same taxi.

Montresso Foundation and Jardin Rouge

About twenty kilometres from the city, the Montresso Foundation has hosted artists in residence on the Jardin Rouge estate since 2009 and stages several exhibitions a year drawn from these residencies. Visits are private and by appointment only, booked by email, Wednesday to Saturday, at 350 dh per person. In the first half of 2026, slots ran from 10am to 4pm; they are extended in summer. Arrange a driver for the round trip.

The galleries of Guéliz

Guéliz is home to most commercial galleries, around Rue de la Liberté, Rue de Yougoslavie and Rue Tarik Ibn Ziad, an area easily covered on foot. Our guide to Guéliz and Hivernage will help you find your way around the district.

• Comptoir des Mines Galerie, 62, corner of Rue de la Liberté and Rue de Yougoslavie. The 1932 building once housed a mining equipment company; restored for the 2016 Biennale, it offers about 1,500 m² of exhibition space devoted to Moroccan and African artists. After a group show that opened on 15 September, the gallery presents the painter Hassan Bourkia from 23 October 2026. It opens Monday from 3pm to 7pm and Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 1pm and 3pm to 7pm, with shorter hours during Ramadan and in summer (it closed from mid-July to mid-August in 2026). Free admission.
• Galerie Siniya28, 28 Rue Tarik Ibn Ziad, first floor (apartment 4). Opened in 2016, it supports young Moroccan and international artists: painting, photography, ceramics. Monday to Saturday, 9.30am to 1pm and 2.30pm to 7pm; free admission.
• Galerie Tindouf, 22 Boulevard Mohammed VI. Run by the Temli family, it mainly shows the great names of modern Moroccan art, such as Mohamed Melehi, alongside contemporary artists. Monday to Saturday, 9am to 12pm and 2.30pm to 7pm.

Other venues in the district held exhibitions in 2026 on a more occasional basis: Galerie 38 (64 Rue Tarik Ibn Ziad), L'blassa Art Space (38 Rue Tarik Ibn Ziad) and Galerie Noir sur Blanc (48 Rue de Yougoslavie, Adam Plaza building).

Beware of older guidebooks: Galerie 127, devoted to photography, closed for good in 2024, and the David Bloch Gallery left Rue des Vieux Marrakchis in 2022 for a showroom open by appointment only.

In neighbouring Hivernage, the Es Saadi hotel presents "From Morocco with Love", an exhibition of modern and contemporary Moroccan art from independence to the 2000s. Admission is free; in autumn 2026, guided tours are by appointment.

Sidi Ghanem: MCC Gallery and designers' showrooms

The Sidi Ghanem industrial zone, about 5 km north-west of the medina, brings together designers' workshops and showrooms. Contemporary art has its place there too.

• MCC Gallery, 281 Rue Principale, shows Moroccan and international artists and takes part in the 1-54 fair. It opens Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm, with free admission. From 16 October 2026 it presents "Where the Sun Lies", an exhibition by the French-Moroccan artist Mounir Ayache: sculptures, images and digital installations exploring light and the landscapes of the Maghreb.
• Jajjah, the concept store of the artist Hassan Hajjaj, combines a photography gallery, a shop and a tea room.

Addresses are given by lot number and taxis are scarce on site: ask your driver to wait. On Saturday afternoons and Sundays, most showrooms are closed. To combine art and design, see our guide to shopping beyond the souks.

In the medina: photography, palaces and independent spaces

The medina has few galleries in the strict sense, but several houses, worth visiting in their own right, exhibit living artists.

• The Maison de la Photographie, 46 Rue Ahl Fès, near the Ben Youssef Madrasa, shows Morocco as photographers saw it from the late 19th century to 1960; the exhibition "Maroc, regards d'hier et d'aujourd'hui" runs until 31 October 2026. Daily, 9.30am to 7pm; 80 dh, 50 dh for residents of Morocco, free for under-15s.
• Dar Bellarj, opposite the Ben Youssef Madrasa, presents "Archéologies" until 25 December 2027, a group exhibition born of excavations in the very ground of the house, with nearly twenty artists and researchers. Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30am to 3pm, closed during the summer holidays; free admission.
• Dar el-Bacha – Musée des Confluences, the former palace of Pasha Thami El Glaoui, hosts temporary exhibitions by the National Museums Foundation. Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm; 60 dh for foreign visitors.
• Le 18, 18 Derb el-Ferrane, in the Riad Laârous neighbourhood, a few minutes' walk from Dar el-Bacha. This independent cultural space, founded in 2013 by the photographer Laïla Hida, hosts residencies, exhibitions, readings and talks. Its bookshop opens Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 11am to 6pm; events are announced on its social media.

To link these addresses on foot, read our guides to the northern medina and the Mouassine district.

The big events: the 1-54 fair and the Biennale

The 1-54 Marrakech fair, devoted to contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora, has been held at La Mamounia hotel since 2018. The latest edition took place from 5 to 8 February 2026; the next is announced for 18 to 21 March 2027, with two days reserved for guests and press, then two public days, Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 March. Tickets are sold on the fair's official website. It is the best time for an art-focused trip: galleries and foundations open their exhibitions the same week. In February 2026, Dar Bellarj opened "Archéologies" and Galerie Siniya28 a group show.

The Marrakech Biennale, by contrast, is dormant. It held six editions between 2005 and 2016, in venues such as the El Badi Palace, the Bahia Palace and the former Bank Al-Maghrib branch on Jemaa el-Fna, which now houses the Museum of Intangible Heritage. The edition planned for 2018 did not take place for lack of funding, and none has been held since.

Summary table

Prices noted in October 2026. Opening hours change during Ramadan and several venues close for a few weeks in summer: check before setting out in July and August.

Planning a day of contemporary art

Distances mean you should group visits by area:

• A morning in Guéliz: Comptoir des Mines, Siniya28 and Tindouf, on foot, in about two hours.
• An afternoon on the outskirts: MACAAL by taxi, or the Palmeraie with the Palmeraie Museum and the Farid Belkahia Foundation.
• Half a day in the medina: the Maison de la Photographie and Dar Bellarj in the morning, then Dar el-Bacha and Le 18.
• Sidi Ghanem on a weekday, combining MCC Gallery with the design showrooms.

Avoid Mondays, when MACAAL, Dar el-Bacha and Dar Bellarj are closed, and Tuesdays for MACAAL: from Wednesday to Friday, almost everything is open.

Further reading

For historic collections and palace museums, continue with our guide to the museums of Marrakech. The guide to Guéliz and Hivernage helps you combine the galleries with the rest of the new town, and our guide to shopping beyond the souks extends a visit to Sidi Ghanem. If you are coming for the 1-54 fair, book your accommodation early: fair week draws collectors and gallerists from all over the world.