Elvira Dyangani Ose: Meet Zeitz MOCAA’s Visionary New Artistic Director

As the museum enters its second decade, Zeitz MOCAA has announced Elvira Dyangani Ose as their new Artistic Director, effective from October 2026.

She takes over from the late Koyo Kouoh, the Cameroonian-Swiss curator who oversaw the museum’s remarkable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and who unfortunately passed in 2025. After a lengthy search at home and abroad, Zeitz is proud to announce Dyangani Ose’s appointment to the critical role, following her most recent role as director of The Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art.

According to Zeitz MOCAA co-founder and co-chair, David Green OBE, Dyangani Ose reflects the museum’s ongoing vision of pan-African storytelling that still connects to the broader world of art. Here’s everything museum visitors need to know.

About Elvira Dyangani Ose

Elvira Dyangani Ose is a Spanish art curator whose heritage is rooted in the Equatorial Guinean diaspora. Early in her career, she served as a curator at the Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno in the Canary Islands, helping put together a landmark exhibition titled Olvida Quien Soy/ Erase Me From Who I Am. This piece gave a platform to many up-and-coming South African artists, including Nicholas Hlobo, Zanele Muholi, and Moshekwa Langa, who have come to define much of the country’s contemporary art.

She was also instrumental in the Tate’s African Acquisitions Committee and its involvement in art relating to the African diaspora, bringing works from the continent to the world stage at one of the world’s most historic art institutions. She then spent several years at The Showroom in London, serving on various juries, including those who judged the prestigious Turner Prize around the end of the 2010s.

Dyangani Ose served as director of the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art (MACBA), helping award the Future Generation Art Prize and Mondrian Prize to rising artists from the Global South. She has also participated in many conferences about contemporary African art and the African diaspora, making her an ideal candidate to continue the work of the Zeitz MOCAA and retain its status as the world’s largest museum dedicated to contemporary African art.

About the Appointment

As the visionary leading the Zeitz MOCAA into its next era, Dyangani Ose steps into an institution looking to build towards the future. After joining the museum, she spoke of her excitement at continuing its journey as a leading African institution: “I look forward to working alongside the museum’s remarkable team, artists, supporters, and the local and global communities, building upon its extraordinary foundation by fostering meaningful collaborations and artistic exchanges across cultures and geographies.”

Zeitz co-founder, co-chair, and naming inspiration, Jochen Zeitz, said: “Dyangani Ose joins Zeitz MOCAA at a defining moment in our journey. As we approach our 10th anniversary, her appointment builds on the foundations laid in our first decade. She brings deep experience in institutional leadership and will expand the museum’s artistic ambition—across exhibitions, research, collections, public engagement, and the way we work with artists and audiences.”