Dar Bellarj: the house of storks and its exhibitions

Updated on October 2, 2026

Dar Bellarj, "the house of storks", is a cultural centre set in a large house in the medina, opposite the Ben Youssef Madrasa. According to tradition, an old fondouk once stood here and took in sick or injured storks, hence the name. The house later served as a school, then stood empty until 1998, when two Swiss patrons, Susanna Biedermann and Max Alioth, bought and restored it. The Dar Bellarj Foundation opened here in 1999. It is devoted to Morocco's living culture: themed exhibitions that combine social questions with contemporary art, concerts, workshops and classes for medina residents. Since Susanna Biedermann's death in 2007, it has been run by Maha El Madi.

Highlights

The white courtyard

The house is arranged around a large white-walled courtyard lined with arcades on columns. A cornice of green glazed tiles runs along the top of the walls, and tall wooden doors open onto the exhibition rooms.

The central fountain

In the middle of the courtyard, a marble basin on a pedestal rises above a small round pool, set in a square of grey stone. Around it, the white columns carry carved capitals.

The carved stucco arches

Several rooms open through scalloped arches of carved stucco, framed by wooden doors. This decoration, restored in the late 1990s, is as much part of the visit as the works on show.

The "Archaeologies" exhibition

From 5 February 2026 to 25 December 2027, the foundation presents "Archaeologies", a group exhibition that reads Marrakech through its successive layers. It starts from excavations carried out in the very ground of Dar Bellarj, searching for traces of one of the city's first Almoravid mosques. Nearly twenty artists and researchers, brought together by curators Laila Hida and Inès Yahiaoui, take part.

Infos pratiques

Tips

Admission is free (as checked in October 2026). The house is small: combine your visit with the Ben Youssef Madrasa, just opposite, and the Maison de la Photographie. The foundation closes early, at 3pm, and also closes for the summer holidays: check before you go in July and August.

How to get there

9 Toualat Zaouiat Lahdar, Marrakech medina, opposite the Ben Youssef Madrasa. From Jemaa el-Fna square, allow about 15 minutes on foot heading north through the souks. Taxis cannot enter the souks: get dropped off as close as possible and finish on foot. The Maison de la Photographie and the Marrakech Museum are a few minutes' walk away.