Architects of Liberation: Modernism in Western Africa

The first major museum exhibition examining architecture's role in shaping decolonization across Western Africa, featuring 400 objects—mostly never publicly shown—from seven nations reimagining their

Why go

This is the first major museum exhibition to examine architecture's role in African decolonization and nation-building. The show spans seven countries and features 400 objects, nearly all being shown publicly for the first time, including architectural drawings, models, archival images, and newly commissioned site-specific photographs and videos th

What to expect

Architectural drawings, models, and archival images alongside newly commissioned site-specific photographs and videos spanning Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, and Cameroon. The exhibition explores how newly independent nations used modern architecture to project a forward-looking, progressive self-image shaped by both continent

Things to know

• First major museum exhibition to examine architecture's role in African decolonization.
• 400 objects on view, nearly all being shown publicly for the first time.
• Spans seven Western African nations: Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, and Cameroon.
• Organized by Martino Stierli, The Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design, and Ikem Stanley Okoye, guest curator and associa
• Support provided by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts.
• Located in The Robert B. Menschel Galleries, MoMA Floor 3, 3 East.

Plan your visit

Member previews July 2–4. General public opening July 5, 2026. Tickets required; purchase at visit.moma.org/select.