For decades, a concrete grain silo stood at the edge of Cape Town’s harbour, a relic of the city’s industrial past. When it opened in 1924, it was among the tallest buildings in South Africa. In September 2017, it reopened with an entirely new purpose: the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, known as Zeitz MOCAA. The British designer Thomas Heatherwick carved a soaring atrium out of its concrete tubes, and the museum became the largest institution in the world dedicated to contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora.
The silo and its design
The grain silo complex was used to store and load grain for export. It closed in the early 2000s. The silo stands in the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, one of Cape Town‘s busiest tourist areas. The museum is named after Jochen Zeitz, a German businessman and former chief executive of Puma, whose collection of contemporary African art formed its foundation.
Heatherwick’s studio cut through the silo’s tubes to create a cathedral-like central atrium, shaped like the cross-section of a grain kernel. The upper floors feature bulging, faceted glass windows that light up the building at night.
Opening, galleries and debate
The museum opened to the public on 22 September 2017, attracting large crowds. It has many gallery spaces across several floors, as well as a sculpture garden and education areas. Exhibitions have featured artists from across Africa and the diaspora. The museum introduced free entry days for African residents to encourage local visitors. The museum faced early leadership changes, including the departure of its founding director in 2018.
Some critics questioned whether a museum founded on a European collector’s holdings could represent African art. Supporters said it gave African art a world-class home on the continent. The building has become a landmark and a draw for visitors to Cape Town.
Legacy and the hotel on top
Zeitz MOCAA is part of a wider growth in museums and galleries for contemporary art in Africa. Thomas Heatherwick is a London designer known for projects such as the UK pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai Expo. The Cape Town silo was one of his most ambitious conversions of an industrial building. The upper floors of the silo building were turned into a hotel, whose large faceted windows look out over the harbour and Table Mountain.
The silo was built to ship South African grain abroad. It now houses African art that stays on the continent.
