Museum of contemporary art in Ouidah, Art museum in Ouidah, Benin.
The Museum of Contemporary Art occupies Villa Ajavon, a single-storey Afro-Brazilian building completed in 1922, set behind the Basilica of Ouidah beside the Musée du Soleil. Its beige facade faces the street between two roads, behind a small gate, and an inscription above the main entrance reads "VILLA AVAJON 1922". Each year it shows a selection of works from the Zinsou family collection.
Villa Ajavon was built between about 1920 and 1922 for a wealthy merchant from Togo who settled in Ouidah. In 2003 Marie-Cécile Zinsou promised students in an Abomey-Calavi village that she would show them African contemporary art in a museum. That promise led, a decade later, to the museum's opening on 11 November 2013 after the villa's full renovation, making it the first contemporary art museum in sub-Saharan Africa outside South Africa.
The museum displays works by artists from across Africa in rotating exhibitions that change throughout the year. Visitors can experience photography, paintings, sculptures, and installations that reflect contemporary African artistic voices.
The museum welcomes visitors on most days of the week without charging admission fees. The venue includes an art shop for purchasing works and a dining area for refreshment and rest.
The museum opened in Villa Ajavon, whose entrance bears the inscription "VILLA AVAJON 1922". The building was put up around 1920 for a wealthy merchant from Togo who settled in Ouidah, and it was fully renovated before the 2013 opening.
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