Famed French architecture firm Studio KO designed a museum in Marrakech to house the Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent’s massive collection. Musée Yves Saint Laurent Marrakech will be situated next door to the Jardin Majorelle, which along with a botanical garden also houses the Islamic Art Museum of Marrakech. The expansion will include a permanent research space, a library, and an auditorium. The museum will contain over 5,000 clothing items, 15,000 accessories, and thousands of sketches and objects.

President of the foundation Pierre Bergé had the following to say about his partner’s connection to Marrakech.

Yves Saint Laurent and I discovered Marrakech in 1966, and we never left. This city deeply influenced Saint Laurent’s life and work, particularly his discovery of colour. The Studio KO architects share this passion for Marrakech. Their admiration for the region and its culture, as well as their intellectual and artistic rigour, signalled to us that they would be the perfect architects to undertake this project. Their clean, uncluttered style recalls Saint Laurent’s work, and we are delighted to be able to develop a common vision for a project of this stature, which is as emblematic as Yves Saint Laurent’s oeuvre.

Take a look at Studio KO’s designs below. They’ve built vacation homes for Bergé as well as billionaires and heiresses across the globe. They’re also responsible for André Balazs’ Chiltern Firehouse.

jardin-majorelle musee-yves-saint-laurent