Anima Garden by André Heller

Overview

Anima is a garden unlike any other around Marrakech — the vision of the Austrian multimedia artist André Heller, who conjured a surreal, joyful landscape of sculpture and exotic planting on the road south toward the Ourika Valley. Paths wind between towering bamboo, cactus and palm through bursts of colour and unexpected artworks, with the snow-topped Atlas as a backdrop and a café named for the writer Paul Bowles to round off the visit.

Opened in 2016, Anima sits roughly 30 kilometres south of the city, close enough for an easy half-day trip and far enough to feel like a proper escape. Heller designed it as a total work of art — 'a garden for the soul' — layering thousands of plant species into dense, painterly compositions and threading the whole with sculptures, some his own, some by or evoking artists such as Keith Haring and Picasso, plus playful, dreamlike installations that reveal themselves as you wander.

The planting is the star: groves of green and golden bamboo, cactus gardens, palms, olive and fruit trees, and borders of intensely coloured flowers arranged for constant surprise. Water features, a maze-like layout and hidden viewpoints keep you turning corners, and the mood is deliberately magical rather than botanical — this is a garden that wants to delight and disorient in equal measure.

At its heart is the Paul Bowles café, a shaded spot for mint tea or lunch with views toward the mountains, named for the American writer who made Morocco his home. Anima runs a shuttle from central Marrakech, or you can drive or take a taxi; because it's a set-piece experience rather than a quick stop, it's worth allowing a couple of hours to see the art, walk the paths and linger over a drink. It pairs well with a longer day out toward the Ourika Valley.