The Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Art (MMPVA) wll be the world’s largest free-standing museum dedicated to photography. DeZeen Magazine
DeZeen Magazine (September 13, 2013) — The world’s largest free-standing museum dedicated to photography is set to be built in Morocco by British firm David Chipperfield Architects.
The Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Art (MMPVA) by David Chipperfield Architects will showcase a permanent collection of lens-based art and photography from the nineteenth century to the present and host a program of contemporary art exhibitions.
The museum will cover an area of approximately 6,000 square metres in the west part of Marrakech, adjacent to the twelfth century Menara Gardens.
When completed the space will feature galleries, a theatre, cafe, bookshop, public spaces and educational facilities.
A large atrium will form a centerpiece to the building with a rectangular pool of water on the ground floor. Varieties of desert plants in a garden will surround the atrium on the third floor.
“With a rich program of exhibitions, education and cultural exchange the museum will be the first such institution on the African continent,” said the firm. “It will broaden the artistic experience across cultural boundaries to form greater understanding and tolerance.” In the meantime, the Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Art (MMPVA) is temporarily located at El Badi Palace and its first photography exhibition opens later this month.
Other projects by David Chipperfield Architects include a gallery building at the Saint Louis Art Museum in Missouri, the Musée des Beaux-arts in Reims, France and the seafront Turner Contemporary Gallery in Margate, East Kent.
The Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Arts
The Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Arts will be built at the edge of the historic 12th Century Menara Gardens in Marrakech. The Gardens – historically the link between the Atlas Mountains, life-giving water and the old walled city is a fitting place to build a museum which will surely become the 21st century link between the culturally diverse people of Morocco, her visitors and the international world of art and culture.
Marrakech, located in the heart of Morocco, hosts a vast and diverse pool of some 9 million international visitors annually and is the home of both the Marrakech International Film Festival and the Marrakech Biennale. The Marrakech Museum for Photography and Visual Arts will be a cultural epicenter in the region; its location will serve as the heart of a multi-point star drawing scholars, students, and visitors from around the world.
With a rich program of exhibitions, education and cultural exchange the Museum will be the first such institution on the African Continent and will broaden the artistic experience across cultural boundaries to form greater understanding and tolerance.
[For more information from the architects on the project…]
