Nowruz Family Festival

Honor the new year at our annual Nowruz Family Day. Come dressed in your Nowruz best and welcome spring with free attractions for all ages, including storytelling, hands-on activities, and more. Persian sweets and food will be available for purchase. Learn about Nowruz.

Register in advance to make sure you get the best experience. Some activities have a limited capacity, with entry on a first-come, first-served basis.

Performances
All performance locations have limited capacity. No one may enter when the theater is full/at capacity.

• Storytelling with Xanthe
  12, 1, 2:20, and 3:30 p.m.
  Ripley Center, Discovery Theater, level B3

Activities
Special thanks to the Family Fun team and our backgammon community players.

• Haft Sin Table
  11 a.m.–4 p.m.
  West Building, Lobby (Mall Entrance)
• Scavenger Hunt and Storybook Reading
  11 a.m.–2 p.m.
  West Building, Galleries 3 and 4
• Calligraphy by Alibaba Awrang
  11 a.m.–1 p.m.
  East Building, B1 Lobby
• Children’s Book Reading with Rashin Kheiriyeh
  11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m.
  East Building, Gallery 27, level B1
• Backgammon and Chess
  12–3 p.m.
  West Building, South Corridor

Crafts
Special thanks to the Family Fun team and Sarv School.

• Haft Sin Coloring
  11 a.m.–2 p.m.
  West Building, North Corridor
• Mask Craft by Sarv School
  11 a.m.–4 p.m.
  West Building, Freer Conference Room, level GR
• Hyacinth Craft
  11 a.m.–4 p.m.
  East Building, Gallery 30, level B3
• Crafts with Rashin Kheiriyeh
  11 a.m.–4 p.m.
  East Building, Gallery 27, level B1
• Calligraphy Workshop with Alibaba Awrang
  2–4 p.m.
  East Building, ImaginAsia Studio, level B2
  This workshop has limited capacity. If the studio is full, you will have to wait to enter until others leave.

Tours and Talks

• Tours with Curator Antonietta Catanzariti
  1–2 p.m. and 2:30–3:30 p.m.
  East Building, Gallery 21
• Tours with Curators Massumeh Farhad and Simon Rettig
  2:30–3:30 p.m.
  West Building, Galleries 3–4
• Docent-led Spotlight Talks
  West Building, Galleries 3–4 and 12

Food for Sale
Sales from 12–4 p.m., as long as supplies last. Lines end at 3:30 p.m.
Ripley Center, Rooms 3035 and 3037

Vendors include

• Moby Dick
• Kandu Pastry
• The Persian Table
• Afghan Chai

About Nowruz
Nowruz, the Persian word for “new day,” marks the vernal equinox and the first day of spring. Rooted in Zoroastrianism (the religion of Iran before the advent of Islam), Nowruz was celebrated in Iran and much of the Ancient Near East as early as three thousand years ago. Today, people in many regions—from West Asia and the Caucasus to Central and South Asia—participate in the thirteen days of Nowruz festivities with their own local variations.

Featured exhibitions: Engaging the Senses and Feast Your Eyes. 

Our annual festival is made possible by the Jahangir and Eleanor Amuzegar Persian Cultural Celebrations Fund.
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution. Photo by Colleen J. Dugan