We’re excited to welcome you to the Museum of West African Art as we open our doors for the very first time on Tuesday 11 November 2025 from 12PM. The Museum is open to all and daily passes can be purchased at the entrance. For information on opening times, daily passes, getting to Benin and more —> Plan Your Visit. 

MOWAA’s opening week will feature a vibrant programme of exhibitions, artists talks, live performances, and guided tours celebrating our five-year journey as an institution dedicated to the preservation of heritage, expansion of knowledge and celebration of West African arts and culture. 

From the much anticipated return of Nigeria Imaginary: Homecoming to immersive tours of the Institute, offering a glimpse into our practice and archives, visitors will be invited to experience the Campus and downtown Benin City, engaging in a symbolic experience that interweaves critical dialogue, cultural resurgence, and creative innovation.

Offering an expanded experience of Benin, MOWAA’s City Connections programme upholds the power of local collaboration and highlights layered history amidst contemporary offerings. Explore Benin City via our core connections, select open art Studios, and heritage and art district Tours. Full City Connections guide coming soon.

Most events are open to all — just purchase your daily pass at the museum. For the few events that require registration, please sign up below.

MOWAA’s official collateral programme embodies our ethos of grounded relevancy—using art to transform spaces, build connections, and support community initiatives. This city-wide activation presents Benin as a living canvas of memory and possibility through bold, site-specific works by resident creatives.

The 2025 theme, Before the First Pour, draws on libation in West African traditions as a metaphor for reflection, renewal, and lineage. Through movement, craft, and sound, our resident artists will explore this theme, concluding just before Benin’s Igue Festival in December. Core Connectors include AJ House of Poetry, Arteria, Peter Fleming Studios, The Benin Chorale & Philharmonic Nigeria, and Paul “Word” Uma.

Full City Connections guide coming soon.

We welcome schools, families, and senior citizens to vibrant on-campus sessions that blend art, heritage, and play. Through storytelling, craft-making, and collection trails, our workshops foster shared discovery and intergenerational learning, honouring Africa’s enduring traditions of creativity and knowledge exchange.