Zeitz MOCAA

Zeitz MOCAA occupies a 1920s grain elevator at the V&A Waterfront.

It was once part of Cape Town’s working port infrastructure and one of the tallest buildings in sub-Saharan Africa.

When the museum was created, architect Thomas Heatherwick did not hide the old concrete tubes behind a new interior.

He did the opposite.

Sections of the silos were cut open and hollowed out to create a vast oval atrium. The building’s original industrial structure therefore remains easy to read, only now the grain chambers have become galleries.

The museum focuses on contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora.

The architecture gives that mission another layer. A new cultural institution has been placed directly inside the infrastructure of a colonial port city, forcing an old industrial building into a completely different role.

The concrete itself is therefore worth as much attention as what hangs on the walls.

In short: 🌾 1920s grain elevator · 🏛️ Thomas Heatherwick · 🌀 Carved central atrium · 🎨 Contemporary African art · 🌍 African diaspora · 📍 V&A Waterfront