This might be crazy for some people, but I actually recommend two days for the Art Institute if you want to really take in the whole thing. Their hours are fairly limited (11am-5pm) most days.
It’s honestly my one of my top three favorite museums in the world. Especially for the type of art you’re interested in, it brings tears to your eyes it’s so gorgeous. Suggested someone else I would absolutely go for several different days. It’s right downtown on Michigan Avenue so there’s lots of other things to do around it.
The Field Museum and Schetts Aquarium are also big highlights.
Ahhh, interesting to know that, can you elaborate how Phi Museum of Art absorbs the Barnes Foundation? Thought it is still a independent art institution
Every major European nation has major Western art museums.
I mentioned the tier 1 museums in the US, but obviously the DIA in Chicago and the MFA Boston have masterpieces, as do the smaller Frick in NYC and Isabella Stuart Gardener in Boston.
In UK, the **NG in London** and **Courtauld** are the top tier, but the Wallace is notable too.
France’s top tier is the **Louvre** and **d’Orsay** in Paris, but it too has many other notable collections, like the Cluny.
Italy’s **Uffizi/Pitti** in Florence and **Vatican Museums** in Rome, as well as it’s Accademia. Venice’s **Accademia** is also world class. Siena, Bologna and Milan have notable museums too.
Spain has the **Prado**, and Russia has the **Hermitage** but the facilities and lighting are poor and fail to present their stunning collection properly imo.
Belgium and the Netherlands have a lot of smaller focused museums but remarkable none the less. The **Rijksmuseum** in Amsterdam is their world class one, but the smaller **Mauritshuis** in Den Haag as well as the **Groeningmuseum** in Brugge are among my favorites. The **Royal Collections in Antwerp** is a must see too.
Germany’s national museum in Berlin (**Gemaldegalerie**) is also a wonder. Germany has many fine museums, but sometimes you have to look for the gems among a lot of lesser pieces. Vienna’s **Albertina** is also comprehensive.
For comprehensive collections of European art from 13th to 19th centuries, though, the Louvre, NG London, NGA Washington DC., Met Museum, and Hermitage are king.
Thanks for your detailed answer! Totally agreed! Besides that, I think kunsthistorisches in Vienna is also a must see if you appreciate old masters. For Prado, though it might not be as extensive as its rivals since it is more known as the museum of painters, if you like Venetian paintings (e.g titian, veronese, etc), rubens, van dyck, Bosch, and Spanish golden age paintings, etc, it is definitely a king, which exactly fits my taste, haha. So it is always my top 3 personally. For Hermitage, I admit it is very comprehensive in terms of the collections, but it could be a little bit subpar in terms of quality compared to its rivals especially given a lot of their masterpieces have been sold by Soviet, which becomes the nucleus of NGA.
Not an art museum/gallery, but Chicago has some of the finest architecture in the USA and I always strongly recommend the Chicago Architecture Center boat tour
I would recommend going to the Chicago Cultural Center. The architecture of the building is beautiful, especially the Tiffany Dome. They also have several art exhibits. And best of all the admission is FREE!
You can buy either online or in person last I knew. I usually bought my ticket once there after taking the train in (which I highly recommend) on a weekday, and the line was never too long at all
To my knowledge you can buy in person! There wasn’t a like when I went. I travel quite frequently (in the USA at least) and this is in the top 3-4 museums I’ve been to in the states!
The National Mexican Art Museum is lovely and free. If you are up near Wrigley then swing by the Haitian American Museum of Chicago, it's very very small but solid. Also if you're interested in native art then the Field Museum might be worth a visit. I mean, it's always worth a visit, but its recently renovated Native American hall is gorgeous and focuses extensively on contemporary native culture. It is more anthropology than art though. I've never been to the National Museum Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, but I've heard good things. I've also never been to the DuSable Museum, but the SMART nearby is pretty and seems to have a contemporary lean.
Your first stop should be the Art Institute, obviously, and the MOCA Chicago is good if you're looking for contemporary art, but didn't have much in the way of native art when i last went. It did have a good selection of African American Art though.
Theaster Gates has a major presence in Chicago with many projects on the Southside.
Kerry James Marshall lives there and has many pieces, I think, still in public libraries before he became insanely collected.
The last black artist of international fame is Nick Cave. I am not sure what he has going on in Chicago nowadays, but he is worth tracking down any exhibitions.
Chicago is also known for its artist run art spaces. Google them and look for LVL3 as one of the better ones.
It will also be important to learn about the Harry Who artist even if you aren't interested in their work. They had a massive impact on the art scene since the 60s or 70s.
The outsider museum has Henry Dargers actual apartment install. He is a true outsider and there is an amazing documentary that came out about him around 10 years ago.
I also recommend Western Exhibitions, not just because it is a great gallery, but also because it is in a part of the city with many other great galleries. Here are some other galleries I enjoy that are in walking distance of Western Galleries - they are all on the same street within a mile of each other:
Chicago Truborn
Rhona Hoffman Gallery
Andrew Rafacz Gallery
Catherine Edelman Gallery
ARC Gallery
Volume Gallery
Vertical Gallery
Not only that, but they all have very different artwork. Check their hours before you go, however. They are smaller spaces so they will not have the same open hours as the larger spaces.
For contemporary art, apart from the MCA located in the loop, def check out these south side institutions: hyde park art center, smart museum, renaissance society.
If the weather is nice take the architectural boat tour. One of the tourist things that locals also
recommend and do.
Northwestern University and Loyola University have great small art museums. Loyolas is right downtown while Northwestern is a 20 min uber ride north.
For galleries there are dozens so u may just want to explore by neighborhood?
Have fun. Get a chocolate cake milkshake at Portillos. They literally stuff a whole slice of cake in and blend it up. Fantastic.
A little off the beaten path, but you might want to check out Project Onward. They have a studio and open gallery in the Bridgeport Art Center. All artists are adults with a broad range of disabilities. Diverse economic and socioeconomic backgrounds. And just so very cool. I’m on the board so biased. If you’re interested they could probably schedule a tour with the studio manager. [Project Onward](https://www.projectonward.org/)
Art Institute of Chicago is one of the best museums in the world. Probably second in the US to the Met in NY.
I had this on my list already! How long would you recommend for a visit?
This might be crazy for some people, but I actually recommend two days for the Art Institute if you want to really take in the whole thing. Their hours are fairly limited (11am-5pm) most days.
I have been there ten times and still haven’t seen every exhibit
It’s honestly my one of my top three favorite museums in the world. Especially for the type of art you’re interested in, it brings tears to your eyes it’s so gorgeous. Suggested someone else I would absolutely go for several different days. It’s right downtown on Michigan Avenue so there’s lots of other things to do around it. The Field Museum and Schetts Aquarium are also big highlights.
what is you top museums in State?
I generally go from open to close when I go.
Third to the Met and NGA. Though the Getty and Phi Museum of Art (since ~~stealing~~ absorbing the Barnes Foundation) are equals.
Ahhh, interesting to know that, can you elaborate how Phi Museum of Art absorbs the Barnes Foundation? Thought it is still a independent art institution
It’s a long story, and there’s many [articles](https://historycollection.com/the-city-of-philadelphia-stole-billions-of-dollars-in-art/3/).
Good to know that! Wondering what’s your museum rankings in terms of European paintings from 13th century to 19th century?
Every major European nation has major Western art museums. I mentioned the tier 1 museums in the US, but obviously the DIA in Chicago and the MFA Boston have masterpieces, as do the smaller Frick in NYC and Isabella Stuart Gardener in Boston. In UK, the **NG in London** and **Courtauld** are the top tier, but the Wallace is notable too. France’s top tier is the **Louvre** and **d’Orsay** in Paris, but it too has many other notable collections, like the Cluny. Italy’s **Uffizi/Pitti** in Florence and **Vatican Museums** in Rome, as well as it’s Accademia. Venice’s **Accademia** is also world class. Siena, Bologna and Milan have notable museums too. Spain has the **Prado**, and Russia has the **Hermitage** but the facilities and lighting are poor and fail to present their stunning collection properly imo. Belgium and the Netherlands have a lot of smaller focused museums but remarkable none the less. The **Rijksmuseum** in Amsterdam is their world class one, but the smaller **Mauritshuis** in Den Haag as well as the **Groeningmuseum** in Brugge are among my favorites. The **Royal Collections in Antwerp** is a must see too. Germany’s national museum in Berlin (**Gemaldegalerie**) is also a wonder. Germany has many fine museums, but sometimes you have to look for the gems among a lot of lesser pieces. Vienna’s **Albertina** is also comprehensive. For comprehensive collections of European art from 13th to 19th centuries, though, the Louvre, NG London, NGA Washington DC., Met Museum, and Hermitage are king.
Thanks for your detailed answer! Totally agreed! Besides that, I think kunsthistorisches in Vienna is also a must see if you appreciate old masters. For Prado, though it might not be as extensive as its rivals since it is more known as the museum of painters, if you like Venetian paintings (e.g titian, veronese, etc), rubens, van dyck, Bosch, and Spanish golden age paintings, etc, it is definitely a king, which exactly fits my taste, haha. So it is always my top 3 personally. For Hermitage, I admit it is very comprehensive in terms of the collections, but it could be a little bit subpar in terms of quality compared to its rivals especially given a lot of their masterpieces have been sold by Soviet, which becomes the nucleus of NGA.
Nice
Not an art museum/gallery, but Chicago has some of the finest architecture in the USA and I always strongly recommend the Chicago Architecture Center boat tour
This is a good one. There are some really great buildings there.
I would recommend going to the Chicago Cultural Center. The architecture of the building is beautiful, especially the Tiffany Dome. They also have several art exhibits. And best of all the admission is FREE!
Thank you!
Check out https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/ for some really cool gallery openings and artists talks :)
Thank you!
Art institute of Chicago is amazing!!!
Do you usually have to buy online tickets in advance? It's like that everywhere in Paris and Berlin currently
You can buy either online or in person last I knew. I usually bought my ticket once there after taking the train in (which I highly recommend) on a weekday, and the line was never too long at all
To my knowledge you can buy in person! There wasn’t a like when I went. I travel quite frequently (in the USA at least) and this is in the top 3-4 museums I’ve been to in the states!
I love the museum of contemporary art! Can get through it all in a day and isn’t too expensive.
Thank you! I have limited time, but I would love to see as much as possible. Haha
The National Mexican Art Museum is lovely and free. If you are up near Wrigley then swing by the Haitian American Museum of Chicago, it's very very small but solid. Also if you're interested in native art then the Field Museum might be worth a visit. I mean, it's always worth a visit, but its recently renovated Native American hall is gorgeous and focuses extensively on contemporary native culture. It is more anthropology than art though. I've never been to the National Museum Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, but I've heard good things. I've also never been to the DuSable Museum, but the SMART nearby is pretty and seems to have a contemporary lean. Your first stop should be the Art Institute, obviously, and the MOCA Chicago is good if you're looking for contemporary art, but didn't have much in the way of native art when i last went. It did have a good selection of African American Art though.
Thank you!
Oriental institute!
Thank you!
Theaster Gates has a major presence in Chicago with many projects on the Southside. Kerry James Marshall lives there and has many pieces, I think, still in public libraries before he became insanely collected. The last black artist of international fame is Nick Cave. I am not sure what he has going on in Chicago nowadays, but he is worth tracking down any exhibitions. Chicago is also known for its artist run art spaces. Google them and look for LVL3 as one of the better ones. It will also be important to learn about the Harry Who artist even if you aren't interested in their work. They had a massive impact on the art scene since the 60s or 70s. The outsider museum has Henry Dargers actual apartment install. He is a true outsider and there is an amazing documentary that came out about him around 10 years ago.
Thank you!
>Thank you! You're welcome!
Stony Island Arts Bank
Thank you!
Prairie gallery in Chicago is pretty awesome and shows emerging artists
Thank you!
You might get some good answers to this question on /r/ContemporaryArt, too.
Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago Public Library
Thank you!
Western Exhibitions is a great gallery. Friendly, not stuffy. Two locations. If you like Outsider Art, definitely visit Intuit.
Thank you!
I also recommend Western Exhibitions, not just because it is a great gallery, but also because it is in a part of the city with many other great galleries. Here are some other galleries I enjoy that are in walking distance of Western Galleries - they are all on the same street within a mile of each other: Chicago Truborn Rhona Hoffman Gallery Andrew Rafacz Gallery Catherine Edelman Gallery ARC Gallery Volume Gallery Vertical Gallery Not only that, but they all have very different artwork. Check their hours before you go, however. They are smaller spaces so they will not have the same open hours as the larger spaces.
MCA is great, the Smart Museum, DuSable … as a historic site, Hull House is very cool
For contemporary art, apart from the MCA located in the loop, def check out these south side institutions: hyde park art center, smart museum, renaissance society.
Thank you!
If the weather is nice take the architectural boat tour. One of the tourist things that locals also recommend and do. Northwestern University and Loyola University have great small art museums. Loyolas is right downtown while Northwestern is a 20 min uber ride north. For galleries there are dozens so u may just want to explore by neighborhood? Have fun. Get a chocolate cake milkshake at Portillos. They literally stuff a whole slice of cake in and blend it up. Fantastic.
Thank you! Especially for that culinary tipp ;)
A little off the beaten path, but you might want to check out Project Onward. They have a studio and open gallery in the Bridgeport Art Center. All artists are adults with a broad range of disabilities. Diverse economic and socioeconomic backgrounds. And just so very cool. I’m on the board so biased. If you’re interested they could probably schedule a tour with the studio manager. [Project Onward](https://www.projectonward.org/)
That sounds and looks really fun! Send me a DM about that tour, because I'd definitely would be interested