Atchugarry Museum of Contemporary Art

The Atchugarry Museum of Contemporary Art (Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Atchugarry, or MACA) is a private, free-admission contemporary art museum located in Manantiales, Maldonado, Uruguay. Opened on January 8, 2022, it occupies a 90-acre landscape on Route 104, kilometer 4.5. Commentators have described it as the first permanent contemporary art museum in Uruguay. The institution was conceptualized by Uruguayan sculptor Pablo Atchugarry and realized by his Fundacion Pablo Atchugarry, with the building designed by architect Carlos Ott of Estudio de Arquitectura Atchugarry. Its inauguration by President Luis Lacalle Pou drew international attention, and Condé Nast Traveller subsequently listed it among the best new museums globally.

The museum bears the name of Pablo Atchugarry's late brother, Alejandro Atchugarry, a prominent politician. Pablo Atchugarry conceived the project and channeled it through the foundation that carries his name. Carlos Ott served as design architect for the building, which was constructed using red grandis eucalyptus. The opening ceremony on January 8, 2022 featured an anthological exhibition of Christo and Jeanne-Claude, with President Luis Lacalle Pou presiding alongside notable figures from Uruguayan and international art and culture circles.

The museum launched with an inaugural collection of 500 pieces. This founding acquisition spans significant figures in modern and contemporary art, reflecting an international scope with particular attention to Latin American and North American artists. The collection's breadth suggests an ambition to establish a major institutional presence in a country previously lacking a permanent contemporary art museum of this scale.

The founding collection includes works by Wifredo Lam, Vik Muniz, Louise Nevelson, Frank Stella, and Joaquín Torres-García, among many others. These names represent a deliberate range across twentieth-century movements, from European modernism and Latin American constructivism to American abstraction and contemporary multimedia practice.

The museum building occupies a substantial footprint within its -acre Manantiales setting. Architect Carlos Ott designed the structure using red grandis eucalyptus wood. The facility comprises four exhibition halls, a multifunctional room, and a cinema, suggesting programming capacity beyond static display. The rural coastal location on Route 104 positions it within the Maldonado department, an area known for beach resorts and increasing cultural development.

The Atchugarry Museum of Contemporary Art operates as a private institution with free admission. It is located at Route 104, kilometer 4.5, in Manantiales, Maldonado, Uruguay. The museum maintains an active website at macamuseo.org. Since its 2022 opening, it has functioned as a new cultural destination in a country where permanent contemporary art infrastructure had previously been absent.