Koyo Kouoh, Visionary Curator and Advocate for African Art, Dies at 58

Koyo Kouoh, the esteemed Cameroonian-born curator and director of the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) in Cape Town, has passed away at the age of 58. Her death was confirmed by Zeitz MOCAA on May 10, 2025, though the cause was not disclosed. Kouoh had been recently diagnosed with cancer and died in a Swiss hospital . A trailblazer in the global art scene, she was appointed in December 2024 to curate the 61st Venice Art Biennale, making history as the first African woman to hold this prestigious role. She had been deeply involved in shaping the exhibition's vision and themes, with the unveiling of the 2026 Biennale's title and theme scheduled for May 20.

Koyo Kouoh.©Mehdi Benkler

Throughout her illustrious career, Kouoh championed Pan-Africanism in the arts, elevating African and diaspora artists on the global stage. Before her tenure at Zeitz MOCAA, she founded RAW Material Company, an art center in Dakar, Senegal, and contributed to major exhibitions such as documenta 12 and 13. Her exhibitions, including When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting and Saving Bruce Lee: African and Arab Cinema in the Era of Soviet Cultural Diplomacy, were celebrated for their intellectual rigor and cultural significance. 

Her passing leaves a profound void in the world of contemporary art, and she is remembered for her extraordinary human and intellectual commitment .