By Kathy L. Collins
On Saturday, September 29, select museums across Florida will participate in the Eighth Annual Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day Live! This event celebrates cultural education through the nation’s wide array of museums and institutions. The program allows two people from each household to visit the participating museums for free.
During the Eighth Annual Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day Live!, participating museums will emulate the free admission policy of the Smithsonian Institution’s Washington, D.C. based facilities. The program strives to encourage learning and the dissemination of knowledge nationwide. If you have ever had a desire to visit one of the area’s many fabulous museums and institutions, this is a great opportunity to get some of the admission for free.
Locally, there are more than 17 participating venues, including the Florida Museum of Photographic Art, located at 400 N. Ashley Dr., Cube 200 in downtown Tampa. Bryant Martinez, Winthrop Town artist and board member of FMoPA said, “Having FMoPa be a part of the Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day Live! demonstrates the caliber of museums that we have in the Tampa Bay area. What a wonderful way for the Tampa Bay area to open up the many museums that we have for people to come and visit.”
Other local venues include The Pier Aquarium in St. Petersburg, The Armed Forces Military Museum in Largo, the Tampa Bay History Center in Tampa, the St. Petersburg Museum of History, the Museum of Fine Arts of St. Petersburg, the Henry B. Plant Museum at the University of Tampa, Cracker Country at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa, the Florida Craftsmen in St. Petersburg, the Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg, The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, the Ybor City Museum State Park, the Polk Museum of Art in Lakeland and the Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales.
Last year, more than 1,400 museums across the country participated with more than 350,000 people visiting the participating museums.
While admission is free for two people per household, you will need a ticket to gain entry. “Our free online ticketing makes accessing museums and cultural institutions easy for anyone that is interested,” said Jennifer Hicks, group publisher, Smithsonian Media.
Please visit www.smithsonian.com/museumdaylive to get your ticket and to obtain a complete list of all participating museums and institutions.
