The
Art Institute of Chicago (
AIC) is an encyclopedic
fine art museum located in
Chicago, Illinois's Grant Park. The Art Institute has one of the world's most notable collections of
Impressionist and
Post-Impressionist art in its permanent collection. Its diverse holdings also include significant
Old Master works,
American art, European and American
decorative arts,
Asian art and
modern and
contemporary art. It is located at 111
South Michigan Avenue in the
Chicago Landmark Historic Michigan Boulevard District. The museum is associated with the
School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is overseen by Director and President James Cuno. At one million square feet, it is the second largest art museum in the United States behind only the
Metropolitan Museum of Art in
New York.
The Museum’s Collection
The collection of the Art Institute of Chicago encompasses more than 5,000 years of human expression from cultures around the world and contains more than 260,000 works of art.The art institute holds works of art ranging from as early as the japaneese prints to the most updated American art.
Today, the museum is most famous for its collections of
Impressionist,
Post-Impressionist, and American paintings. Included in the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist collection are more than 30 paintings by
Claude Monet including six of his
Haystacks and a number of
Water Lilies. Also in the collection are important works by
Pierre-Auguste Renoir such as
Two Sisters (On the Terrace) and Henri Matisse's
The Bathers, Paul Cezanne's
The Basket of Apples, and
Madame Cézanne in a Yellow Chair. At the Moulin Rouge by
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is another highlight, as are
Georges Seurat's Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte and
Gustave Caillebotte's Paris Street; Rainy Day. Non-French paintings of the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist collection include
Vincent Van Gogh's Bedroom in Arles and
Self-portrait, 1887. Among the most important works of the American collection are
Grant Wood's American Gothic and
Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
In addition to paintings, the Art Institute offers a number of other works. Located on the lower level are the Thorne Miniature Rooms which 1:12 scale interiors showcasing American, European and Asian architectural and furniture styles from the
Middle Ages to the 1930's (when the rooms were constructed). Another special feature of the museum is the Touch Gallery which is specially designed for the visually impaired. It features several works which museum guests are encouraged to experience though the sense of touch instead of through sight as well as specially designed description plates written in
braille. The American Decorative Arts galleries contain furniture pieces designed by
Frank Lloyd Wright and
Charles and Ray Eames. The Ancient
Egyptian,
Greek, and
Roman galleries hold the mummy and mummy case of Paankhenamun, as well as several gold and silver coins.
The Terra Collection
Since
April 2005, approximately fifty paintings originally from the
Terra Museum (now the Terra Foundation) collection have been on loan to the Department of American Art at the Art Institute of Chicago. The collections of the Terra and the Art Institute are located in a new suite of galleries, and together provide one of the nation’s most comprehensive presentations of
American art. The foundation’s collection of American works on paper are housed in the Department of Prints and Drawings at the Art Institute.
The Art Institute Building
The current building at 111 South Michigan Avenue is third address for the Art Institute. It was designed in the
Beaux-Arts style by Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge of
Boston, Massachusetts for the 1893
World's Columbian Exposition as the World's Congress Auxiliary Building with the intent that the Art Institute occupy the space after the fair closed.
The Art Institute's famous western entrance on
Michigan Avenue is guarded by two
bronze lion statues created by
Edward L. Kemeys. The sculptor gave them unofficial names: the south lion is "stands in an attitude of defiance," and the north lion is "on the prowl." When a Chicago sports team makes the playoffs, the lions are frequently dressed in that team's uniform. Evergreen wreaths are placed around their necks during the Christmas season, and during that time the lions are called offense and defense named by Dan Town.
The east entrance of the museum is marked by the stone arch entrance to the old
Chicago Stock Exchange. Designed by
Louis Sullivan in
1894, the Exchange was torn down in
1972, but salvaged portions of the original trading room were brought to the Art Institute and reconstructed.
The Art Institute building has the unusual property of straddling open-air railroad tracks. Two stories of gallery space connect the east and west buildings while the
Metra Electric and
South Shore lines operate below. The lower level of gallery space was formerly the windowless Gunsaulus hall, but is now home to the Alsdorf Galleries showcasing Indian, Southeast Asian and Himalayan Art. During renovation, windows facing north toward Millennium Park were added. The gallery space was designed by Renzo Piano in conjunction with his design of the Modern Wing and features the same window screening used there to protect the art from direct sunlight. The upper level formerly held the modern European galleries, but was renovated in 2008 and now features the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist galleries.
Libraries
"Burnham Library" - Founded 1912
Located on the ground floor of the museum is the
Ryerson & Burnham Libraries. The Libraries' collections cover all periods of art, but is most known for its extensive collection of 18th-20th century architecture. It serves the museum staff, college and university students, and is also open to the general public. The Friends of the Libraries, a support group for the Libraries, offers events and special tours for its members.
Modern Wing
On May 16, 2009, the Art Institute opened the Modern Wing, the largest expansion in the museum's history . The 264,000 square foot addition, designed by
Renzo Piano, makes the Art Institute the second-largest museum in the US.
The Modern Wing is home to the museum's collection of early 20th-century European art, including
Pablo Picasso’s
The Old Guitarist,
Henri Matisse’s
Bathers by a River, and
René Magritte’s
Time Transfixed. It also houses contemporary art from after 1960; new photography, video media, architecture and design galleries; temporary exhibition space; shops and classrooms; a cafe and a restaurant,
Terzo Piano, that overlooks Millennium Park from its terrace. In addition, the
Nichols Bridgeway connects a sculpture garden on the roof of the new wing with the adjacent
Millennium Park to the north and a courtyard designed by Gustafson Guthrie Nichol.
Notable holdings
See also
