Thursday doors – 27 November 2025 – Marrakesh doors – Excursion to Anima Garden

Doors 334 – Doors and the gardens of Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025 (Part XIV)

On our way home from the High Atlas mountains, we called in at the Anima gardens, an extraordinary place where a stunning collection of plants meets the creative artistic imagination of multi-media artist André Heller. This garden was one of the great highlights of our trip to Marrakesh. An oasis (almost literally) of cool shade in the middle of the parched arid landscape which was full of surprises around every corner.

The imaginative sculptures in the garden seemed to be perfectly at home despite their bright colours and quirkiness. The place was a feast for the eyes and a haven for birds and insects too. This was genuinely one of the best gardens I have visited in the world, and utterly unexpected. A must if visiting Marrakesh.

It is another week in which doors play second-fiddle to their surroundings, but I hope you enjoy the ensemble:

Entrance door to Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Entrance door to Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Colourful service doors, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Colourful service doors, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Eyes over a gateway, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Eyes over a gateway, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Desert plants, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Desert plants, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Desert plants, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Desert plants, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Garden staff door, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Garden staff door, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Face mask in the bushes, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Face mask in the bushes, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Large sculpture spraying a fine mist, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Large sculpture spraying a fine mist, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Wooden sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Wooden sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Colourful cone sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Colourful cone sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Palm trees in the garden, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Palm trees in the garden, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Another cone sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Another cone sculpture, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Open lawn in the garden at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Open lawn in the garden at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
View of the High Atlas from the garden at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
View of the High Atlas from the garden at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Classy cafe at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Classy cafe at Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Fancy iron door, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Fancy iron door, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Large iron sculpture of a 'Yaz', a Berber symbol which appears on the Berber flag, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
Large iron sculpture of a ‘Yaz’, a Berber symbol which appears on the Berber flag, Anima, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025

It has been fun digging out these pictures of the Anima garden, and I have shared far more than I intended for the purposes of Thursday Doors (a bit of a show-and-tell I’m afraid). Back to the city next time. Have a great weekend.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s weekly Thursday Doors post.

Grip

Wisteria and hostas, Redland, Bristol, October 2025
Wisteria and hostas, Redland, Bristol, October 2025

.

Green to yellowing

magnificent leaves succumb

to autumns damp chill

.

by Scooj

One meter square veg plot

.

A productive patch

becomes a favourite haunt

for an errant dog

.

by Scooj

Fecund

.

Single courgette plant

feeding an entire army

a small miracle

.

by Scooj

Tall

Sunflower, Redland, Bristol, August 2025
Sunflower, Redland, Bristol, August 2025

.

Reaching for the sun

and reflecting its glory

gifting happiness

.

by Scooj

Cinnabar Moth

Cinnabar moth (Tyria jacobaeae), Redland, Bristol, June 2025
Cinnabar moth (Tyria jacobaeae), Redland, Bristol, June 2025

.

On garden patrol

cinnabar moth entrances

daylong resident

.

by Scooj

Cannon

.

From Bristol rooftops

carrion crow cannon caws

reverberating

.

by Scooj

Common European Greenbottle Fly

Common European Greenbottle Fly (Lucilia sericata). Redland, Bristol, June 2025
Common European Greenbottle Fly (Lucilia sericata), Redland, Bristol, June 2025

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Most harshly thought of

bothersome and annoying

bottle-green beauty

.

by Scooj

Green Immigrant Leaf Weevil

Green Immigrant Leaf Weevil, Polydrusus formosus, Redland, Bristol, June 2025
Green Immigrant Leaf Weevil, Polydrusus formosus, Redland, Bristol, June 2025

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In the herb garden

a small emerald jewel

these warm summer days

.

by Scooj

Walled garden

Row of rhubarb, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire, May 2025
Row of rhubarb, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire, May 2025

.

Enclosed assembly

hums rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb

pollinators buzz

.

by Scooj