All museums open free to the public for International Museum Day

Egypt Independent

18-05-2025

Egyptian Minister of Culture, Ahmed Fouad Hanou, has announced the free admission to all artistic and national museums affiliated with the Ministry of Culture for the public, in celebration of International Museum Day, which falls on May 18th every year.
Minister Hanou stated, 'Museums are incubators of the nation's memory and a vibrant space for the interaction of generations with their heritage and identity. Our celebration of International Museum Day is an open invitation to the public, especially young people, to discover the artistic and knowledge treasures that these cultural institutions hold.'
Hanou affirmed that this initiative comes within the framework of the Ministry's strategy to enhance the role of museums in spreading cultural and historical awareness and encouraging various segments of society to interact with Egypt's artistic and heritage treasures, thereby contributing to the consolidation of national identity and the deepening of the sense of belonging.
The Ministry, represented by the Plastic Arts Sector headed by Dr. Walid Kanoush, has prepared a rich and diverse artistic and cultural program that begins today, Saturday, May 17th. The Taha Hussein Museum will host an art workshop followed by the 'Taha Hussein Salon for People of Determination' under the title 'Get to Know Taha Hussein with Us.'
Meanwhile, the Mustafa Kamel Museum will hold a cultural seminar entitled 'Green Museums… A Sustainable Future for Heritage Preservation,' discussing sustainability concepts in museum work. The Zakaria El-Khanany and Aida Abdel-Karim Museum will witness a storytelling workshop aimed at the 12-18 age group, focusing on the biographies of the artists Zakaria El-Khanany and Aida Abdel-Karim.
The Mohamed Nagy Museum will host an exhibition of the outcomes of one-day workshops, accompanied by a seminar titled 'Our Schools… in Our Museums,' starting at 11:00 AM. An introductory seminar followed by drawing and coloring workshops for all ages will be held at the Museum of Fine Arts in Alexandria, from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. The day will conclude at the Museum of Modern Egyptian Art with a panel discussion at 6:30 PM on 'Museum Exhibition Policies and Proposed Plans for Their Transformation into Digital Museums Using Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality.'
The celebrations continue on Sunday, May 18th, with the Victory Museum of Modern Art in Port Said organizing an educational seminar entitled 'The History of Museums and Their Future in the Age of Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence.'
Additionally, an art workshop for making jewelry using beads and Egyptian dough will be held for the 12-18 age group at the Zakaria El-Khanany and Aida Abdel-Karim Museum. The Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil Museum and its annex will welcome the public with open events including art workshops in its front garden, followed by the distribution of gifts and the organization of an exhibition of participants' works.
As for the Ratib Seddik Cultural Museum and Center, it is organizing a series of events starting with a storytelling workshop and an introductory tour about the artist and his wife at 10:00 AM, followed by a 'Create Your Artwork' workshop at eleven, then an accessories workshop at twelve noon, and the day concludes with a ceramics workshop (clay modeling) at 1:00 PM.
At the Taha Hussein Museum, an exhibition titled 'Taha Hussein in the Eyes of Artificial Intelligence' will open, followed by a musical concert and a workshop by the 'Nour El Hayah' team for People of Determination. Meanwhile, the Al-Abnoudi Museum of the Hilali Epic will host a storytelling workshop entitled 'Treasures of Our Museums,' aiming to introduce visitors to the holdings of the Plastic Arts Sector museums. At the Ahmed Shawqi Museum, a live simulation tour of the poet's life will be presented, embodying aspects of his biography within the museum. Additionally, the Mansoura National Museum in Dar Ibn Loqman will hold an art workshop in cooperation with the Dakahlia Syndicate of Plastic Artists, followed by a lecture entitled 'The Importance of Museums in Preserving Heritage and Culture.'
The Museum of Fine Arts in Alexandria will continue its activities with a workshop from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM, followed by three consecutive lectures starting with 'Creativity: The Path to Inner Peace,' then 'A Historical Overview of Artistic Creativity and its Relationship to the Renaissance of Humanity,' and concluding with a lecture entitled 'Academic Methodology and its Role in Mobilizing and Motivating the Creative Behavior of Fine Arts Students.' The Museum of Modern Egyptian Art will conclude its day with the opening of an art exhibition titled 'From Pioneers to Descendants' at 6:00 PM.
Furthermore, the Cultural Development Fund, headed by Engineer Hamdi El-Satahi, will open its affiliated Umm Kulthum and Naguib Mahfouz Museums free of charge to the public throughout the two days of the celebration. The two museums will feature performances and artistic and cultural workshops specifically for this occasion, targeting different age groups and contributing to highlighting Egyptian cultural icons in an interactive format with visitors.
In the same celebratory context, the General Egyptian Book Organization and National Archives, headed by Dr. Osama Talaat, will open the doors of the Egyptian National Library and Archives Museum for Cultural Heritage in the historical building in Bab El-Khalq free to the public on Sunday, May 18th. Visitors will have the opportunity to explore the heritage treasures housed within the institution, including rare manuscripts and documents that represent a part of Egypt's cultural memory.
International Museum Day is organized annually by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) since 1977, and each year it is assigned a theme that highlights one of the central issues related to the role of museums in contemporary societies.