Moco Museum

The Moco Museum (Modern Contemporary Museum) is an independent, privately funded art museum group with locations in Amsterdam, Barcelona, and London, dedicated to exhibiting modern and contemporary art. Founded in 2016, the museum was established with the explicit mission of attracting broader and younger audiences and making art accessible to the public beyond traditional collectors and institutions. The Amsterdam location, which opened in April 2016, sits on Museumplein in the historic Villa Alsberg and has become one of the most visited private museums in the city. Across all its locations, the group reports having welcomed more than six million visitors from over 120 countries since its founding.

The Moco Museum was founded in 2016 by Kim Logchies-Prins and Lionel Logchies as an independent initiative. From its inception, the museum positioned itself within a broader shift toward privately funded art spaces that combine high-profile popular culture with contemporary art collections, including digital and immersive works. Early programming focused on accessible exhibitions featuring popular modern and contemporary figures and street art, with particular emphasis on artists such as Banksy and Andy Warhol. The Amsterdam location opened in April 2016 on Museumplein. The museum subsequently expanded to Barcelona, located in the historic Palau Cervelló-Giudice in El Born, a building containing parts of a 15th-century predecessor structure with a Renaissance-style courtyard, vaulted staircase with columns and capitals, and an impressive Gothic facade entrance. The London location opened on 10 August 2024 near Marble Arch. Visitor numbers at the Amsterdam location peaked at approximately 769,000 in 2023, marking the highest attendance since opening, before declining to around 610,000 in 2024, a decrease of approximately 21 percent year-on-year.

The Moco Museum's collection and programming combine works from its permanent holdings with external loans, presented in regularly changing displays. The museum's scope encompasses modern and contemporary art with particular strength in popular and accessible figures, street art, and digital and immersive installations. Exhibited artists have included Banksy, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Yayoi Kusama, KAWS, Jeff Koons, JR, Icy & Sot, Tracey Emin, and Studio Irma, among others. The museum's programming strategy emphasizes rotating exhibitions that blend collection pieces with loaned works, allowing for dynamic presentation of both established icons and emerging artists. This approach has included dedicated digital and immersive art spaces, reflecting the museum's commitment to contemporary forms of artistic expression.

The museum's notable holdings and exhibitions span several thematic and programmatic categories. The ongoing Banksy: Laugh Now exhibition, described as unauthorised, features works including Beanfield, Girl with a Balloon, and Flower Thrower. The Modern Masters program presents works by Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Yayoi Kusama, while the Contemporary Masters program includes Marina Abramović, Damien Hirst, KAWS, and Jeff Koons. The Digital and Immersive Art program features Reflecting Forward: In Search of Connectivism by Studio Irma. Significant past exhibitions have included Roy Lichtenstein: Lasting Influence (2017); Icy and Sot: A Moment of Clarity (2018), the first retrospective of the Iranian street-art brothers and political activists; Daniel Arsham: Connecting Time (2019), the New York-based artist's Dutch debut; a Yayoi Kusama exhibition (2019) featuring Night of Stars and Pumpkin; JR Room (2019) including The Gun Chronicles: A Story of America; and THE KID: The Future Is Old (2020), the artist's first solo exhibition in the Netherlands. Current and recent exhibitions include Robbie Williams: Pride and Self-Prejudice (2024), a multimedia exhibition exploring identity and self-reflection; The Symphony of Nature (2023) by design studio Six N. Five; Andres Reisinger: Dreams (2024); and Planet Positive Disruption (2024) by Dutch street artist Frankey. The Moco Garden, the museum's outdoor exhibition space, features works by Banksy, KAWS, WhIsBe, Fidia, and Marcel Wanders.

The Moco Museum Amsterdam is located in Villa Alsberg at Honthorststraat 20 on Museumplein. The building is a townhouse designed in 1904 by Eduard Cuypers, nephew of Pierre Cuypers, the architect of Amsterdam Central Station and the Rijksmuseum. It was originally built for banker Siegmund Alsberg (1847-1915) and was one of the first privately owned residences on Museumplein, remaining so until 1939. The interior has been adapted for gallery use, including spaces for immersive and digital installations. The Barcelona location occupies the historic Palau C Bright, the historic Palau Cervelló-Giudice, formerly the private residence of the noble Cervelló family until the 18th century, with architectural elements dating to the 15th century. The London location, opened in 2024, is situated near Marble Arch.

Moco Museum Amsterdam is located on Museumplein, opposite the Rijksmuseum and adjacent to the Van Gogh Museum and the Stedelijk Museum. The museum is accessible by public transport via the Museumplein and Rijksmuseum tram stops, served by tram lines 2, 5, and 12. It is also within walking distance of Leidseplein and Vondelpark. The museum is open daily, with extended evening hours on weekends. The museum is regularly listed among Amsterdam's cultural attractions in independent city guides such as I amsterdam and Time Out. The Amsterdam location recorded approximately 769,000 visitors in 2023 and around 610,000 in 2024.