Mona Khazindar (Arabic: منى خزندار; born 1959)^[1] is a Saudi-American art historian and curator. She was the Director General of the Institut du Monde Arabe from 2011 to 2014.^[2]

Khazindar was born in the United States.^[3] Her father, Abed Khazindar, was an author studying in the country at the time, and her mother, Shams al-Husseini Khazindar, was a journalist.^[3][4]

Khazindar studied comparative literature at the American University of Paris, and modern history at Sorbonne University.^[3]

Khazindar began working at the Institut du Monde Arabe in 1986 as the head of the Department of Contemporary Art and Photography,^[4] and as an overseer of the institute's permanent art collection.^[3]

In 2011, Khazindar was made Director General of the Institut du Monde Arabe, making her the first women and first Saudi to hold the position.^[3] That same year, she co-curated the Saudi pavilion at the 54th Venice Bienniale, the first time Saudi Arabia had such a pavilion.^[3] In 2012, the French Minister of Culture appointed Khazindar to the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations as a permanent member.^[2]

Khazindar has also been involved with Saudi organizations; from 2014 to 2015, she was a cultural advisor to the Saudi Ministry of Tourism,^[4] and in 2018 she was appointed to the Saudi Cultural Authority by royal decree.^[2][4][5] She is also a member of the advisory board of the King Abdulaziz Center of World Culture, and the Saudi Shoura Council.^[4] As part of her role with the King Adulaziz Center, Khazindar has toured in the United States to discuss the history of Saudi Arabia through art.^[6]

Khazindar has founded Al Mansouria Foundation for Culture and Creativity, which promotes Arab contemporary art.^[5]

Khazindar has published two books: View from the Inside: Contemporary Arab Photography, Video and Mixed Media Art (2014), and Visions from Abroad: Historical and Contemporary Representations of Saudi Arabia (2019).^[3][4] She has also edited books on Saudi and Arab artists, such as Abdulrahman Alsoliman and Adam Henein.^[7]

• 2012 Woman of the Year, the Forum of Arab Women^[1][3]

Khazindar is fluent in Arabic, French, and English.^[3] As of 2017, she was living in Riyadh.^[6]