green plants in garden at Palmeraie museum in Morocco; Musée de la Palmeraie

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Musée de la Palmeraie

Top choice in Marrakesh


There's no comprehensive archive of modern Moroccan art in central Marrakesh: it's out here, hidden in the Palmeraie, and it's well worth travelling for. Set in a sprawling Andalusian garden of adobe houses, the Musée de la Palmeraie displays an outstanding collection of photography, painting and sculpture. Its 20th-century watercolours, drawings, prints and oil paintings, by Marrakshi artists such as Hicham Benohoud, Abderrahim Iqbi and Larbi Cherkaoui, are particularly strong and demonstrate how local artists have been inspired by Moroccan life and Islamic culture.

It's blissfully free of crowds and an absolute joy if you want to see art that goes far beyond the tired Moroccan tropes employed by medina wannabe painters.


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