Art Institute, Chicago

The The Art Institute of Chicago Museum. I last visited the museum with a class of 7th graders (12 year olds). They had a great time and so did I.

I'm just loading pictures and place holders until I can get back and add some text. Come back in November and see what's been added.

This place is definitely for art people. Them or for people that are old enough to truly appreciate the art. The pieces themselves are definitely cool to look at. It's overall a cool place for people who enjoy art and seeing some of the best pieces on display.

Great tip for February '09: free admission to all showrooms, half price for the exhebition "becoming edvard munch"

A good place for art lovers! I especially enjoyed the impressionist and post-impressionist section.
I spent 3 hours in there and didn't even get close to see it all.

adults $12
children,students,seniors $7
children under 12 are free

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I visited the Art Institute of Chicago on a Thursday night since admission was free and I can only say that despite the fact that some galleries were not open to the public, 3 hours wasn't nearly enough to see everything this splendid museum has to offer! I ended up skipping some sections altogether in an effort to get at the collections's most renown pieces, all the while trying to convince myself that I'd be back someday to see it all. The Art Institute of Chicago is located in a beautiful Beaux-Arts pavilion that was constructed for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, and I thought it was fairly easy to get around the museum. A new wing is scheduled to open in 2009 to host the contemporary art collection, which should increase the museum's gallery space by one third. The Art Institute is especially famous for its impressionist and post-impressionist collection, as well as for its impressive American arts section. Some of the museum's most beloved paintings include Georges-Pierre Seurat's "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte", Gustave Caillebotte's "Paris Street; Rainy Day", and Grant Wood's "American Gothic".

The Art Institute is open every day from 10:30 am to 5:00 pm, with late nights (8:00 pm) on Thursdays. Admission: $12.

The Art Institute of Chicago is one of the Premier art museums in the US. It is an absolutely beautiful museum, filled with treasures! Best known for it's collections of Impressionist and American art, you're sure to find your own favorites. Stroll through and gaze at the wonderful collections. You will surely be impressed! Although I've been there many many times, I still haven't seen everything!

My favorites at the museum include paintings by Caillebotte (Paris Street), Seurat, Picasso, VanGogh, Renoir and Monet. I also love the "American (stained glass) Windows" of Marc Chagall, and the Thorne Miniature Rooms (downstairs), which are like little dollhouse rooms decorated in different time periods.

Check the website for upcoming exhibits at the Art Institute. They are always superbe!
Past exhibits I've seen include Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet, VanGogh & Gaughin, Degas
and Monet. They have all been fabulous!

Also, if you're interested in studying art, they also have a School of the Art Institute -- Walt Disney went there!

After your visit, don't forget to hit the gift shop. Something artistic will make a nice souvenir from your trip!

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We very rarely visit Chicago without a stop at the Art Institute. They have one of the most enjoyable collections of European Impressionist, Modernist, American 20th century painters that you will see anywhere in the U.S. Some of the more famous paintings in the permanent collection include Edward Hopper's Nighthawks, Grant Wood's American Gothic, Andy Warhol's Mao, George Saurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jette, Vincent Van Gogh's The Bedroom, and Renoir's Lunch at the Restaurant Fournaise. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Besides the sculptures, paintings, sketches, and etchings, there are also architectural elements from various buildings around Chicago and the world, decorative arts (furniture, lamps, etc.), and a reconstruction of the circa 1894 trading floor of the Chicago Stock Exchange.

The original portion of the current museum building was constructed in 1893 as part of the grounds for the World's Columbian Exposition which took place in Grant Park. The Art Institute is one of the few structures from the Exposition that is still standing today. The classic Beaux Arts design is itself a piece of art and fits in well with the grand architecture in either direction up and down Michigan Avenue.

Picasso, Monet, Gris, Wright, Toulouse-Latrec, Homer, O'Keefe, Sargent, Remington, Matisse, etc., etc., etc. If you in any way have an appreciation for any period or type of art, do not miss a visit to the Art Institute. You will not be disappointed!

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Saturday shrimp56 & I traipsed around looking at my favorites from the previous visit:
*Seurat's Sunday on Le Grande Jatte made more famous in Ferris Bueller's Day Off in the scene where Ferris gets reaaaaly close to the painting to see the impressionist strokes of paint overlaid by dots of paint (ergo Pointillism) and then far off to see it in its full effect;
*Renoir's Two Sisters (On the Terrace);
*Caillebotte's Paris Street: Rainy Day, my favorite painting there (and I think in my Top 10). This must be an anchor painting for the museum as it shows up on the cover of the museum guide.

I really wanted to see Chagall's blue stained glass piece (America Windows) but it was either in storage for cleaning or out on tour but definitely "currently not on view".

Sally steered me to the Lorenzo Ghiberti Florentine Renaissance doors, Gates of Paradise (on the flipside you should also see Gates of Hell at the Rodin Museum in Paris). Shrimp tells me she saw these doors before there restoration in Florence a few years back!

Other items of interest included the small Native American artifact collection, the Manet paintings (where shrimp snapped photos of painting corners) and the Chicago Stock Exchange Trading Room. Shrimp had just consented to teach an art history course and so combined this as a research trip and she guided me around showing me items she'd focus on in her class (I'm so lucky!). But nearly got thrown out of the museum as the guard felt we were TOOCLOSE taking photos of some the works of art (ha! at least we're real art appreciators)!!

There were several musicians and poets throughout the museum which elevated the level of cultural interest throughout - trés fantastique! This may have been for the Celtic Fest which was going on that 2nd weekend in September.

The museum houses more than 300,000 works of art within its 10 curatorial departments. Among its great treasures are the legendary masterpieces A Sunday Afternoon on La Grand Jette by Georges Seurat, American Gothic by Grant Wood, Nighthawks by Edward Hopper, and 33 paintings by Claude Monet.

The original, core beaux-arts building, designed by Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge, was built for the World's Columbian Exposition. It was originally named the Allerton Building.

Some say that the Lions that "guard" the outside of the museum are to Chicago what the Statue of Liberty is to NYC. They are definately very recognizable. The lions are not identical twins. One of the lions represents strength, and another represents majesty. The museum has been known to dress up the lions for different occasions (i.e. when the Bears were in the playoffs they put helmuts on them).

Recommended admissions for nonmembers: adults, $12; children, students, and seniors (over 55), $7. Children five and under are free. Tuesdays are FREE. Certain exhibitions require a special timed ticket or the full recommended admission posted at ticket counters.

Special Exhibit: From 7.28.07-10.14.07, the Art Institute will have part of Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise on display. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to observe this masterpiece up close before they are put on permanent display in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo in Florence (and will never travel again).

Art Institute of Chicago is a HUGE museum located at the Grant Park on South Michigan Avenue.

When I said HUGE I sincerely mean it. I had 2 hours to look around before I was supposed to meet some friends from out of state. I headed directly to the 2nd floor European paintings wing as they have many works from 14-17 century from renowned artists including Gaugin, Monet, Munch and Picasso.

Time was running out so I whisked past the last few rooms and headed to the basement to see the Thorne Miniature Room gallery. This is an amazing collection of miniature rooms from different era's both in Britain and America. Again 15 minutes was not enough to enjoy the collection carefully.

I definitely need to go back since there are still so many things to see: the American paintings collection, the photography exhibition and the sculpture collection to name a few.

The museum is open from 10.30 am to 5pm from Monday - Wednesday; otherwise it is open until 9 pm.
Admission costs $12 for adults, and in the summer Target sponsors free evenings on Thursdays and Fridays (from 5pm onwards)

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3 levels of the museum offer vast art collections, anything from paperweight to architecture, exhibitions (Cezanne to Picasso, until May 12).

On the Lower Level (Gallery 10) visitors can also enjoy The Touch Gallery. Specifically designed for visually impaired but available to all, it has five sculptures (all represent the human face) accompanied by text panels and labels presented in both large type and Braille.