Go Where the Work Is Made

Early on a second morning in Marrakech, Scott Monaco watched vendors in the medina unpack their delivery boxes. The goods inside were imports from the other side of the world and on the shelves by lunchtime being sold as local craft. The rest of that trip went into finding the artisans who were making things themselves. They were there, in now far fewer numbers and away from the tourist routes, but finding them made the trip more rewarding.

The same principle applies well beyond craft markets. Some of the most exciting contemporary art in the world right now comes from Africa, Asia, and Latin America, from the galleries of Lagos and the Dakar biennale to the open studios of Shanghai’s M50 art district, and almost none of it reaches a standard travel itinerary. These art scenes are worth traveling for on their own. The galleries are serious, the openings and poetry slams can be open to anyone who shows up, and the work is unique.

Craft traditions reward the same effort. A workshop that has produced the same brasswork or indigo cloth for generations will usually sell to you directly, and an artisan studio visit means meeting the person whose work you are carrying home. Some travelers go further and take a class in the tradition itself, and several of the experiences below are built for exactly that, well beyond the usual tourist demonstration.

If you care about this, you have probably stood in a market wondering whether what you were holding was made anywhere near where you were standing. That is hard to answer on your own, and it is exactly the kind of question local knowledge can answer easily. The experiences below are where Scott Monaco would start if traveling with art in mind. Scott believes that an object you carried home from the person who made it beats anything in a departure lounge gift shop.

Stories from Scott Monaco

In What We Should Expect to See Is What We Will See, Scott Monaco travels through Zimbabwe’s Eastern Highlands and encounters the arts scene around Mutare, including MutARE Tales, the collective that puts on poetry slams and mural projects while mentoring emerging artists. It is exactly the kind of scene Scott wants to point travelers toward.

Contributors Who Write From Experience

Scott Monaco is always interested in local traditions, up-and-coming artists, and the festivals where their work shows. If you are an artist, you live close to a craft tradition or an art scene in the places the platform covers, the submission guidelines are on this site. Tips on what to cover are also as welcome as finished pieces, by email through the About page.

A Few Art And Artisan Experiences Worth Building A Trip Around

Contemporary art in Lagos, Nigeria — Lagos runs one of the most energetic art scenes on the continent, anchored by the ART X Lagos fair each November and new spaces like Mbari Kola, a cultural house with a public gallery that opened in 2026 in the tradition of the 1960s Mbari clubs. The city’s galleries make it possible to spend days on contemporary African art alone.

MutARE Tales and the arts scene in Mutare, Zimbabwe — MutARE Tales, an arts association in the city of Mutare, puts on poetry slams and mural projects while mentoring emerging artists from the surrounding communities. Travelers who time a visit to an event see a side of the Eastern Highlands that no craft market shows.

Shanghai’s M50 art district, China — A converted textile mill complex on Moganshan Road where contemporary Chinese artists and galleries work side by side, with many studios open to walk-ins. It is one of the easiest places anywhere to watch a major art scene at work.

Shadow puppet workshops in Yogyakarta, Indonesia — Wayang kulit, the Javanese shadow puppet tradition, holds UNESCO recognition, and workshops in Yogyakarta show the full process from carving the leather to the all-night performances. Visitors can watch a master at work or take a carving class.

Dak’Art Biennale in Dakar, Senegal — Dak’Art, the Dakar Biennale, is the longest-running major contemporary art event on the African continent, and in biennale years it takes over the city. Between editions, the Village des Arts keeps dozens of working studios open to visitors.

Maya weaving in Guatemala’s highlands — Backstrap-loom textiles in the villages around Lake Atitlán carry patterns specific to each village, a living tradition where the design itself holds geographic identity. Women’s cooperatives in San Juan La Laguna teach multi-day weaving classes, one of the most accessible ways anywhere for a traveler to learn a craft firsthand.

The Bienal de São Paulo, Brazil — The second-oldest art biennial in the world after Venice fills an Oscar Niemeyer pavilion in Ibirapuera Park, and admission is free. São Paulo’s gallery scene runs year-round for travelers who miss the biennial itself.

Ceramics in Fez, Morocco — Working potteries in and around the medina still produce hand-painted tableware and zellij tilework using techniques that predate the tourist trade by centuries. Watching zellij cutters at work makes clear why the real thing costs what it does.

Silk and ceramics in Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley — Margilan’s workshops still produce ikat silk by hand from cocoon to finished cloth, and the town of Rishtan is known across Central Asia for its blue-glazed pottery. Both welcome visitors, and both show a different Uzbekistan from the Silk Road cities.

Barkcloth making in Tonga — Ngatu, the beaten mulberry-bark cloth, is still made communally by women’s groups and remains central to Tongan weddings and funerals. Finished cloth is sold at the Langafonua handicrafts centre in Nukuʻalofa, and a ngatu session in progress is one of the most distinctive artisan sights in the Pacific.

Where To Go Next

New stories from Scott Monaco are published weekly.

If art or craft is driving your next trip, tell Scott Monaco what you want to see or learn to make.

More Ways to Travel

Explore how Scott Monaco travels: Food & Cuisine · Safari & Birding · Cultural Immersion · Photography · Cycling & Hiking · Solo Travel · Art & Artisan Craft · Books & Bookstores — or see all Ways to Travel.