For the first half-century of Moroccan independence, the country had no dedicated national museum of modern art. The Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMVI) closed that gap in 2014, opening on Avenue Moulay Hassan as the first state-run institution in Morocco devoted to 20th- and 21st-century work. The four-storey purpose-built block does two jobs: a chronological hang of the national modern collection upstairs, and a temporary programme that has punched well above Rabat's size since opening — Picasso, Goya, Delacroix, and major African and Arab contemporary surveys have all shown here.

The permanent collection traces Moroccan modernism from the pioneers of the 1950s — Cherkaoui, Gharbaoui, Chaibia, Belkahia, the Tetouan and Casablanca schools — through the abstract and figurative debates of the 1970s and 80s, into the contemporary scene of the last twenty years. The hang is clear and signposted in Arabic, French and English, and reads as the cleanest single-room summary of modern Moroccan art available anywhere. The temporary halls on the upper floors handle the big international shows with museum-grade lighting and proper climate control.

Tickets are 60 MAD for the permanent collection; temporary blockbusters are usually priced separately at 80–100 MAD, with reduced or free entry for under-12s and students with ID. The building is closed on Tuesdays. Wheelchair access is good throughout — the 2014 construction was built to current standards, with lifts to all floors. Photography is allowed in the permanent collection without flash; temporary exhibitions vary, so check the signs at each entry. Two hours is enough for a comfortable visit; check the website before travelling because the blockbuster shows sometimes sell timed tickets online and queue at the door.