Moco Museum, which already has sites in Barcelona and Amsterdam, has its sights set on London
Oxford Street is going through a period of transition at the moment – the footfall levels are low, iconic brands have left the street (RIP Big Topshop) and American candy shops have swooped in to take advantage of the shopfronts lying empty. But there is more change afoot. On top of plans to revamp Oxford Street with wider pavements and more greenery, a scheme to give independent brands a six-month rent-free tenure on the city’s most famous shopping street. And now Moco Museum is getting in on the act by submitting a planning application to Westminster Council to open a modern art gallery at the top end of the street by Marble Arch.
If Moco gets permission, it’ll fill the three-floor 1920s building with art from the likes of Yayoi Kusama, KAWS, Banksy, Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Andy Warhol. Moco states that the other two museums it operates attract over a million paying visitors each year, so it’ll be interesting to see if the London site (if it goes ahead) can match those numbers, given that the immersive Frameless gallery is also in Marble Arch, not to mention all the free places you can see modern art in the city. Could this be the creation of a new cultural quarter in W1H? Or will it be a flop like the Marble Arch mound? Only time will tell.
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