Cardiff will welcome its first Museum of Modern Art, which aims to provide a platform for contemporary local artists and showcase global talent in the Welsh capital.

The nonprofit private art museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art (AMOCA), will have about 1,000 works, mainly drawn from Welsh-Swedish entrepreneurs and philanthropists in the collection of co-founder Anders Hedlund.

Amoca's founders said they will be close to a deal to determine the building purchase to permanently accommodate Cardiff's artwork, which is expected to open in 2026.

According to its mission statement, the museum will aim to “increase the public’s access to contemporary art, expand the scope of traditional museums and promote creative development, thus undermining traditional and stereotype narratives”. It also said it will be committed to minorities and subcultures, with particular focus on the works of platform Welsh artists and the next generation of Welsh talent.

Amoca hopes to be able to accommodate restaurants and social event spaces, indoor and outdoor exhibitions, featuring permanent and rotating collections, and host stable negotiations, workshops, youth seminars and artists’ residences.

Several preview exhibitions are planned before the museum opens next year. The free pop-up pop-up titled Black Sound in the Museum series, which includes works by 34 world-leading African and African diaspora artists, opened Tuesday at the Temple of Peace in the city center and lasted until June 14.

The exhibition's works are from the famous Ghanaian artists Amoako Boafo, Cameronian Marc Padeu, Tesfaye Urgessa, Nigeria-British painters Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri Esiri, Franco-Senegase Alexandre Dip and Marcus Jansen and Marcus Jansen, from New York.

Also shown is Welsh-ghanian textile artist Anya Paintsil in Glyn Ceiriog near Llangollen.

She is almost a sculpture work with bleeding noses, no back teeth, no eyebrows, and draws on the symbolic traditions of the artist’s fantasy ancestors, and among other materials, wool, human hair and rubber bands to explore what she describes as “non-representative descriptions of black figures.”

"The show is about narrative, who can write narrative, so it is an honor to be part of a group of artists of color in this social and political environment. Historically, our work has been excluded from the museum's collections and is ignored. The imperialist, an African-colored imperialist, whose work on display at the Temple of Peace is a huge, abstract paint with canvas work on which there is a headless, armless man riding a horse.

Although the series covers a wide range of media, styles and continents, the themes throughout Amoca are the focus for young, emerging artists.

"I think it's very brave and ambitious to open a museum like this. They're obviously thinking of using a beautiful space like the Temple of Peace and looking for permanent homes," Katherine Casals, 50, of Cardiff, said during an open day visit.

"In the capital, exhibitions like this are very needed, and I think it's a beautiful piece. I hope a lot of people can see it."

Hedlund has been working in Wales for 45 years since its establishment of stationery manufacturer IG Design Group, and the group owns a factory in Ystrad Mynach. He established a literary support center in Cardiff in 2014 and said he believes Amoca is another way to give back to local people during the public sector funding crisis.

A cross-party tournament report published in January found that despite its proud heritage, Wales lags behind its European counterparts in entertainment, sports and cultural services.

Last year, the Welsh Arts Council warned that if funds continue to dry up, the country's professional sector could "collapse within 10 years", causing the Welsh government to announce an annual top-up of £4.4 million.

"We could have opened Amoca in Stockholm, but it would have had a bigger impact in Cardiff. There are several museums of modern art in Sweden," Hedlund said. "I've been working on art for 30 years, and at auction houses, I've seen Irish collections, Scottish collections, but I've never seen a collection in Welsh. Now it's time to change and we provide Welsh artists with the platform and opportunity they deserve."