Photo by Tom Sweeney

The Minneapolis Institute of Art has canceled two weeks of events, tours and activities due to the spread of coronavirus.

The museum will remain open, however, according to a Thursday statement.

To minimize shared contact, Mia has also closed its Family Center, removed its touch screens and suspended its Arts Carts program, with its reusable props.

Museum staff decided Thursday to cancel activities through March 26, a spokeswoman said, based on recommendations around social distancing. Those events include an artist talk with Sky Hopinka on Thursday night.

The museum is contacting ticket holders and will be issuing refunds.

"While Mia has not been directly affected by COVID-19, we are monitoring the situation carefully," the museum said in a statement.

In other parts of the country, museums have shut their doors.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall and the New York Philharmonic are among the cultural institutions that have announced that they will temporarily shut down, according to the New York Times.

Concerns about coronavirus have affected other arts events in Minnesota.

The Walker Art Center has canceled a pair of lectures. On Thursday, it canceled its Insights Design lecture with designer Hassan Rahim, set for March 17, because of travel precautions.