Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

What Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa does

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) is a public not-for-profit museum founded in September 2017 in Cape Town, South Africa, housed in a converted historic grain silo at the V&A Waterfront. The institution is dedicated to collecting, preserving, researching, and exhibiting contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora, anchored by a permanent collection of over 500 objects established in 2015 from the personal collection of co-founder Jochen Zeitz, a German businessman and art collector. The museum operates rotating temporary exhibitions alongside the permanent collection, and runs an integrated ecosystem including the BMW Centre for Art Education, The Atelier residency programme (with the Koyo Kouoh Atelier named posthumously for the late Executive Director and Chief Curator), a tiered membership programme, an e-commerce museum shop, and a Global Council of international art philanthropists spanning 18+ countries.

The business model is a hybrid non-profit revenue mix: ticket admissions and venue hire (Atrium and Scheryn Arena), five membership tiers priced in South African Rand (R320 Grain for students/pensioners through R10,000 Gold for four persons with private tours), museum shop retail with international shipping, donations routed through the American Friends of Zeitz MOCAA (AFOZM) for tax-efficient US giving, annual gala fundraising, and educational programme fees. Anchor institutional sponsorship comes from BMW South Africa, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Gucci, Christie's, the AKO Foundation, and the University of the Western Cape (for the Museum Fellowship Programme). Pricing is publicly disclosed, in ZAR, with a R30 fee for non-member film screenings under the Pan-African Film Caravan.

The museum serves multiple customer segments: general public visitors and tourists, paying members across five tiers, schools and tertiary institutions (CAPS-curriculum-aligned programming), corporate clients for venue hire, and a global patron base of collectors and philanthropists. Distribution is primarily physical through the V&A Waterfront site supplemented by online ticketing (WebTickets), the shop.zeitzmocaa.museum e-commerce platform, and a multi-channel marketing presence across Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. The organization is registered as The Zeitz MOCAA Foundation Trust (IT000844/2015), a South African Public Benefit Organisation, governed by a Board of Trustees.

Name

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

Legal name

The Zeitz MOCAA Foundation Trust

Website

https://zeitzmocaa.museum

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Zeitz MOCAA is a Cape Town-based non-profit museum (founded 2017) dedicated to contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora. Housed in a converted grain silo at the V&A Waterfront, it holds a 500+ object permanent collection and serves visitors, members, schools, and global art philanthropists through exhibitions, education, and residencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contemporary Art Museum

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Retail-Misc General Merchandise Stores (5399)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Museums (THAJADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH), Museum, Zoo & Attraction Gift Shops (CRALAJAG)

Keywords

• Contemporary art museum
• African art exhibitions
• Art museum membership
• Art education programs
• Museum venue hire

Headquarters

HQ city

Cape Town

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Admission Tickets: Revenue generated from visitors purchasing tickets to view exhibitions and the permanent collection.
2. Membership Subscriptions: Annual and multi-year membership tiers (Silo, Bridge, Grain, Facet, Gold) providing unlimited access and member benefits including discounts and exclusive events.
3. Museum Shop Sales: Retail sales of art-inspired design, books, prints, stationery, gifts, jewellery, and fashion from South Africa, the continent, and beyond.
4. Venue Hire: Rental of museum spaces including the Atrium and Scheryn Arena for private events, with discounts for members.
5. Donations and Gala Fundraisers: Philanthropic contributions, annual gala events, and supporter programs including American Friends of Zeitz MOCAA for U.S.-based donors.
6. Film Screenings and Workshops: Fees from film screenings (R30 per person) and educational workshops, with proceeds supporting the BMW Centre for Art Education.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Zeitz MOCAA collects, preserves, researches, and exhibits contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora across a permanent collection of more than 500 works and a programme of rotating exhibitions housed in the converted historic grain silo at Cape Town's V&A Waterfront. Around the exhibitions, it sells paid museum admission, runs a tiered membership programme, operates a museum shop, rents out event spaces, and delivers educational programmes, residencies, and film screenings.

Product overview

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) is a public not-for-profit museum institution organized as a unified platform comprising the core museum with its rotating exhibitions and permanent collection of over 500 objects, supplemented by the BMW Centre for Art Education for educational programming, The Atelier for artist residencies, the ZM Shop for retail merchandise, tiered Membership Tiers for patron engagement, the Global Council for international art philanthropists, and the Pan-African Film Caravan for cinematic programming. The institution positions these complementary offerings as an integrated cultural destination that collects, preserves, researches, and exhibits contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora while developing supporting educational, discursive, and enrichment programmes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BMW Centre for Art Education: A dedicated education centre developing and implementing programmes engaging with the museum's collection and exhibitions, supported by BMW South Africa.
• The Atelier
• Koyo Kouoh Atelier

Products and services

• Museum exhibitions and permanent collection viewing

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 500 objects in the permanent collection representing contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Mellon FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Andrew W. Mellon Foundation provides generous support for Zeitz MOCAA's exhibition and curatorial programming, including major exhibitions and the IMPRINT residency programme.
• BMW South AfricacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBMW South Africa has been a long-term champion of cultural engagement, supporting Zeitz MOCAA's vision from initial commissions in the BMW Atrium to today's BMW Centre for Art Education, including education programmes, exhibitions, and the Pan-African Film Caravan.
• GuccimajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGucci supports Zeitz MOCAA's curatorial, exhibition and fellowship programming, contributing to the museum's educational initiatives.
• AKO FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAKO Foundation supports the exhibition and contributions by the Zeitz MOCAA and University of the Western Cape (UWC) Museum Fellows programme.
• University of the Western Cape (UWC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZeitz MOCAA partners with UWC for the Museum Fellowship Programme, a pan-African fellowship supporting fine arts graduates and museum professionals from across the continent.
• Christie'smajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChristie's supports the Global Council programme through elevated sponsorship, supporting Zeitz MOCAA's international network of art philanthropists.
• African Film and Media Arts Collective (AFMAC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAFMAC is a continent-spanning cohort of artists and makers developed by Julie Mehretu with BMW support. The collective collaborates with Zeitz MOCAA on the Turning Towards the Sun exhibition and Pan-African Film Caravan programme.
• Hazendal Wine EstatemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerHazendal Wine Estate sponsors the Membership Programme and provides MCC for gala events and member receptions at Zeitz MOCAA.
• LalelaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLalela provides educational arts programmes for youth-at-risk, collaborating with the BMW Centre for Art Education to spark creative thinking.
• Gallery 1957majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGallery 1957, Accra, provided generous support for the commission of Rita Mawuena Benissan's site-specific work The Procession in the museum's Atrium.
• Terra Foundation for American ArtmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Terra Foundation for American Art supports the Cauleen Smith survey exhibition Afflict the Comfortable, Comfort the Afflicted.
• Don JuliominorGTM or Marketing PartnerDon Julio sponsors the annual gala afterparty, transforming the Atrium Bowl into an exclusive nightlife event.
• Investec Cape Town Art FairminorGTM or Marketing PartnerInvestec Cape Town Art Fair collaborates with the Gala Collateral Programme, extending cultural engagement beyond the museum.
• OCULAR (Restaurant)minorOthersOCULAR provides food and beverage services within the museum, offering dining experiences and hosting events in the evenings.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) Lagos: Leading non-collecting contemporary art institution in West Africa offering exhibitions, residencies, and public programmes — a regional peer operating in the same pan-African art ecosystem from a different geography.

Others

• Investec Cape Town Art Fair: Africa's leading art fair, with which Zeitz MOCAA partners via its Gala Collateral Programme. Functions as a complementary ecosystem participant — driving collector traffic, commercial sales, and visibility for African contemporary art that ultimately benefits Zeitz MOCAA's pipeline.

Direct peers

• Centre Pompidou: Paris-based major contemporary art museum with a strong global brand, touring-exhibition model, and luxury-brand sponsorship profile analogous to Zeitz MOCAA's Gucci/Christie's partnerships.
• Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum: Iconic contemporary and modern art museum with a global council structure, large membership programme, and international affiliate network — analogous to Zeitz MOCAA's Global Council and pan-African programming model.
• MACAAL (Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden): Private museum in Marrakech, Morocco dedicated to contemporary African art. Most direct peer: shares Zeitz MOCAA's African contemporary art focus, comparable scale, and reliance on corporate sponsorship and global patron networks.
• Whitney Museum of American Art: New York contemporary art museum of comparable scale and curatorial ambition, with tiered membership, donor-driven exhibition programming, and an iconic purpose-built building — directly comparable to Zeitz MOCAA's operating model.
• Goodman Gallery: Leading Johannesburg/Cape Town commercial gallery representing major contemporary African artists whose works appear in Zeitz MOCAA's permanent collection (e.g., Kudzanai Chiurai). Operates at the intersection of exhibitions, artist development, and global art-fair circulation.
• Tate Modern: London-based global contemporary art museum housed in a repurposed industrial building — directly comparable to Zeitz MOCAA's grain-silo conversion and its model of blockbuster temporary exhibitions layered onto a permanent collection.
• Smithsonian National Museum of African Art: Washington D.C. museum dedicated to African art with a permanent collection, rotating exhibitions, and educational programming. Directly comparable in thematic focus (African art) and educational programming, though with a public (Smithsonian) funding base.
• The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA): U.S. contemporary art museum of similar scale, reliant on memberships, donations, and corporate sponsorship, with a permanent collection and rotating exhibitions — closely mirrors Zeitz MOCAA's diversified non-profit revenue model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ZeitzMOCAA
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCDJltdsHMhBhgl_y6MMEcyQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/ZeitzMOCAA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zeitz-museum-of-contemporary-art-africa
• Instagraminstagram.com/zeitzmocaa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa