Chicago

In Chicago, museums and cultural venues reflect the peculiar history of a city that, from the late 19th century onwards, evolved progressively from a “materialistic” metropolis, devoted almost exclusively to commerce and trade, into one of the United States’s most cosmopolitan and culturally vibrant places. Many of the city’s museums, cultural venues, and art schools are located in two areas, both adjacent to the Lake Michigan waterfront. The first extends, from north to south, from Lincoln Park to Millenium Park, while the other roughly coincides with the Hyde Park neighborhood. The city’s many cultural institutions – including the famous Chicago Art Institute, the second-largest museum of art in the US – collectively present a varied program of popular events related to art, design, architecture, and science, including major exhibitions and international festivals such as the Chicago Architecture Biennial.