The heads of five associations of museum administrators in France have petitioned the French president Emmanuel Macron to let them reopen in mid-May and be one of the first cultural establishments to be opened to the public post-lockdown.

The associations, including the Federation of Contemporary Art Professionals (CIPAC), the French national committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), and three other organizations, penned an open letter addressed to Macron on the 19th of April 2021.

The letter which was published in the French daily, Le Figaro, contained the authors’ frustration over the lack of communication on a date for reopening, and fear that the government might delay reopening museums until other kinds of cultural venues like cinemas and theaters can also reopen to the public.

“The members of our organizations and networks, which represent a wide variety of museums and exhibition venues in France, are worried,” the letter states. “Worried about the situation linked to the pandemic, but also worried about the lack of information and dialogue in the last few weeks relating to the reopening schedule of cultural establishments.”

“We insistently ask for authorization to reopen the doors of our spaces in order to give back to art and culture the place they need to make society [work],” it continues, stressing how they have adapted to fit health measures, with “the strictest and scrupulous respect for protocols.”

The letter is coming on the heels of a video conference between President Macron and French mayors last week where they discussed the government’s plan of reopening some outdoor terraces and cultural venues “around mid-May”, a stand that was reiterated by a government’s spokesman, Gabriel Attal, in a press conference on Tuesday.

Making reference to this plan, the museums’ letter continued: “It was announced two months ago that museums and exhibition venues […] would be ‘the first to reopen’ as soon as a decline in Covid was assured. Where does this promise about an early reopening stand today?’”

On why the letter was addressed to the country’s president and not the culture minister, Xavier Montagnon, general secretary of CIPAC, told Artnet that they aimed as high as possible “because I think that the culture minister [Roselyne Bachelot] is on the same wavelength as us and wishes that cultural venues open as soon as possible too. I think the decision on reopening will be made higher up.”

While Macron is expected to announce the conditions for reopening in the first week of May, the culture ministry is reportedly discussing the reopening with professional bodies, and among the issues being explored is the maximum number of visitors to be allowed, which will very likely depend on the size of the establishment.

Museums in France have been closed for the past six months, since October 30, 2020, when the country went into a second lockdown. Now, the museums' administrators are holding on to the promise made by the culture minister Roselyne Bachelot earlier this year that museums and monuments would be prioritized once case numbers allow for reopening. Hence, they are looking to reopen in mid-May, shortly after the third lockdown is due to end on May 2.

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