Architecture

Reading Time: 6 minutesOliewenhuis Art Museum transforms a former presidential mansion into South Africa’s most distinctive art destination. Completed in 1941 to house the Governor General and later State Presidents—including hosting King George VI and his family in 1947—this Neo-Dutch mansion on Bloemfontein’s Grant’s Hill became public art museum in 1989 after years of citizen campaigning. Set within 12 hectares of indigenous gardens featuring outdoor sculpture, the museum showcases South African art from colonial-era painters like Thomas Baines through modernist master Jacob Hendrik Pierneef to contemporary icon William Kentridge. The underground Reservoir—a converted 1904 granite-excavated water catchment—provides dramatically atmospheric exhibition space, while the African Carousel project integrates mythology, movement, and public engagement in outdoor sculpture accessible to all.

Reading Time: 5 minutesThe National Museum of Ghana, established in 1957 during Ghana’s independence year, stands as West Africa’s oldest museum and Accra’s essential cultural institution. Housing collections spanning ancient terracotta sculptures, elaborate royal regalia from Ghana’s historic kingdoms, vibrant kente and adinkra textiles, traditional musical instruments, and contemporary paintings, the museum offers photogenic encounters with Ghanaian cultural heritage. Located in a repurposed colonial structure in central Accra, the museum transforms architectural legacy into space for Ghanaian narratives told from Ghanaian perspectives. From the golden ceremonial objects of Asante royalty to intricate geometric patterns in handwoven textiles, the museum’s collections provide visual evidence of Ghana’s sophisticated artistic traditions and cultural diversity across ethnic groups.

Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Pierre Bergé Museum of Berber Arts in Marrakech houses one of the world’s finest collections of Amazigh (Berber) artistic heritage, representing decades of collecting by Yves Saint Laurent’s business partner. Opened in 2017 adjacent to the legendary Majorelle Garden, the museum showcases extraordinary textiles, jewelry, pottery, and ceremonial objects from Morocco’s indigenous cultures. From intricately sequined handira wedding blankets requiring months of collaborative labor to massive silver fibulae brooches functioning as portable wealth and protective amulets, the collection celebrates technical mastery and aesthetic sophistication. Studio KO’s contemporary architecture provides elegant backdrop for these masterworks, while exhibitions explore how Berber visual traditions profoundly influenced Saint Laurent’s haute couture designs.

Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMVI) represents Morocco’s most ambitious cultural project, transforming Rabat into North Africa’s contemporary art capital. Inaugurated in 2014 with over 7,600 square meters of exhibition space, this institution charts Moroccan artistic evolution from early 20th-century modernism through cutting-edge contemporary practice. Unlike ethnographic museums, MMVI celebrates living creative production—showcasing the Casablanca School’s abstract calligraphic innovations alongside contemporary video installations and photography. The museum’s architectural design by Karim Chakor merges traditional Moroccan geometric patterns with contemporary minimalism, while its programming positions Moroccan art within broader African, Mediterranean, and global contexts.