04/09/2018
Experience Art, History, & Culture near Hotel Chicago
Here at Hotel Chicago, we don’t simply provide you with the finest in Autograph Collection-style luxury accommodations and amenities: We also position you perfectly for partaking of the Windy City’s absolutely world-class arts-and-culture offerings.
Let’s take a quick survey of only a few of the fabulous destinations for the arts-, culture-, or history-minded Hotel Chicago guest, all easily reached from our doorway!
The Art Institute of Chicago
Dating to 1879 and claiming the better part of 300,000 pieces, the Art Institute of Chicago is one of the biggest and longest-running art museums in the country. Savor up close famous works in the permanent collection such as Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte and Picasso’s Old Guitarist, plus the fabulously curated temporary exhibitions that augment it: Right now you can take in, for instance, Rodin: Sculptor and Storyteller (through April 1st) and Mirroring China’s Past: Emperors & Their Bronzes (through May 13th), among other shows.
Museum of Contemporary Art
Some of the postwar art world’s finest exemplars are displayed at the Museum of Contemporary Art, one of the biggest of its kind in the world. Current exhibitions here include the sweeping 50th anniversary installation of We Are Here (through April 1st); Heaven & Earth: Alexander Calder & Jeff Koons (through March 24th, 2019), putting the spotlight on two of contemporary art’s greatest visionaries; and a solo exhibition of Paul Heyer’s pieces, part of the museum’s Chicago Works series featuring local artists.
The Field Museum
For history of the natural kind, you won’t find better than the Field Museum, home to such iconic mounts as the battling African elephants in Stanley Field Hall, Tsavo’s man-eating lion pair, and Sue, the biggest and most complete skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex yet found. Other highlights include Inside Ancient Egypt, which includes a recreated tomb from Ancient Egypt and one of the largest mummy collections in the country.
The Oriental Institute
More marvels from Ancient Egypt are among the Oriental Institute’s exhibits, some of the most significant of Middle and Near Eastern artifacts displayed anywhere. One of the pinnacles (literally) of that University of Chicago collection is the astonishing 16-foot-tall Assyrian relief of the Iamassu, the winged, human-headed bull.
Chicago History Museum
Counting all of its artifacts, books, photographs, documents, and other holdings, the Chicago History Museum lays claim to a collection better than 23 million strong. These include everything from Abraham Lincoln’s deathbed to Chicago’s first-ever locomotive, Pioneer. The museum’s current exhibitions include a Martin Luther King Jr. photographic retrospective (Remembering Dr. King: 1929-1968, which runs into 2020) and an exploration of Chi-Town during World War I (Chicago & the Great War, through November 12th). Opening April 7th, meanwhile, is Amplified: Chicago Blues, which’ll spotlight Raeburn Flerlage’s amazing pictures of Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Muddy Waters, and other legendary blues musicians at work in 1960s Chicago.
Chicago Theatre
A landmark of the city since 1921, the Chicago Theatre opened as a movie palace but now serves as a high-profile performance venue. Upcoming shows include Cedric The Entertainer (March 24th), Omega Institute Presents: An Evening With Eckhart Tolle (April 7th), the Decemberists (April 10th), and Bill Murray, Jan Vogler & Friends: New Worlds (April 19th).
Second City
Speaking of Bill Murray—head up to Old Town and catch a show at one of the most influential houses of comedy in the world. Murray is only one of a ridiculously high-caliber roster of comics and actors who cut their teeth at Second City—Gilda Radner, John Candy, Chris Farley, Rachel Dratch, and Stephen Colbert are others—and great stuff continues to play out on its esteemed stages.
There’s so much more to take in: the DuSable Museum of African American History, Orchestra Hall, Buddy Guy’s Legends—the list really does go on and on. We’d be happy to provide more recommendations in-person during your Hotel Chicago stay, when the Windy City’s spectacular arts-and-culture scene is truly right at your fingertips!
