For sure there's a lot of museums in Chicago, with many of these focusing on countries and…read morecultures. If you're Greek or into Greek stuff, this is one to check out. The National Hellenic Museum is about the art and history of Greek culture and whatever. A pretty modern looking building that's small by most museum standard but big enough to spend a couple hours in. You can get in for an admission that's not that much to be honest, and learn about the culture and mythology. Appropriately enough it's located in Greektown. It's on Halsted at Van Buren, close to the UIC campus and Greek restaurants. There's enough inside to spend awhile like a few hours or so. It's $10 admission for adults. Museum is bigger than it looks. Good stuff inside. The first floor includes photography exhibits of Greek culture by local photographers. On the second floor was an exhibit on Greek coins commissioned by Alexander The Great. The third floor is about the experience of Greek immigration. At the top of the museum is a rooftop that hosts special events. This is usually closed but if it's open there's a nice view of the city skyline. Getting here is actually pretty convenient. It's located close to the CTA Blue Line. There's also many bus routes so it's very accessible to those who use public transportation.

I came here with a group of 1st grade kids for a learning excursion…read more The museum pretty much made the learning excursion fun for the kids. We didn't walk around the museum so this review is pretty much for the staff and their great introduction about Greece for kids. We pretty much here for almost 3 hours. The kids got to make clay and had a small play about Hercules. They also learned to kinda tell a story from a painting on a clay pot. It was kinda interesting to see how the kids interpret the painting. Honestly, the staff made the whole learning really interesting. Honestly, I am not a big fan of museum but man! I listened to the whole mythology without even yawning. Overall, I would for sure go back here again (by myself!) to go see the whole museum.

This statue is kind of tucked away between the Cook County Administration Building and the Chicago…read moreTemple Building in the Brunswick Plaza. There is metered street parking and commercial parking garages within a reasonable walking distance. Most viewers of this statue will be passerbys. This is not a destination piece by far. It is the work of Joan Miró, who created the piece in 1981. It stands 39 feet tall. It is made of a hodge podge of materials including: steel, wire mesh, concrete, bronze, and ceramic tile. The sculpture was originally called the Sun, the Moon and One Star. The abstract piece looks like a figure with a fork on its head standing on a pedestal. I will be honest. I find this sculpture a bit odd. I did like the colorful interior crystals that look like they are coming through a crack. If you look across the street, you will see the Picasso statue. As with most sculptures that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a destination piece, nor a long stop as I previously mentioned. I was there less than 5 minutes. So, you may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area (and there are many of them), or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip. Fun fact: The sculpture's model can be seen at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Miró's Chicago was initially commissioned but not completed due to the cost. Ten years later, Jane…read moreByrne, the first female mayor of Chicago, was able to raise the funds to complete the sculpture. Initially titled "The Sun, The Moon and One Star, " she is now nicknamed "Miss Chicago" due to her curved dimensions that evoke the famous Minoan snake goddess from the ancient isle of Crete. The public's initial response to the concrete, steel, bronze and ceramic tile masterpiece was less than favorable. Today, she is a beloved Chicago landmark statue. To learn more, scan the QR reader at your visit.

Small but free, not a must do but if it's cold and you need some culture, here you go! Must check…read morein bag at door. I'm in!

This small free museum focuses on American & international photography from the 20th century…read moreonward. The permanent collection includes photos by Henri Cartier Bresson, Harry Callahan, Sally Mann, Catherine Wagner & 500 more of the best photographers working today. There are special rotating exhibits.

I've been wanting to visit the Mitchell Museum since I learned about it about a year ago. It's a…read morevery small museum--you might pass it and not realize what it is, or maybe think it's a church or something. In two stories, they tell you a bit about the history of Native Americans the US and Canada, with a particular emphasis of the history of Native peoples in the city and region. The museum is about 45 years old and one of the few that focuses exclusively on this population. I spent about an hour and a half viewing the exhibits. The various exhibits introduced various indigenous groups (Plains, Woodlands, etc.) and how those groups lived. There were displays of the crafts, both ceremonial and utilitarian, that each tribe was known for, and they were careful to share in most or all instances how those crafts and traditions changed pre- and post-contact. Upstairs there was a section that talked about the presence of American Indians in Chicago and the near region, from explaining the atrocities that the government perpetrated against them to simply explaining the origins of well-known Chicago areas such as Portage Park, Sauganash, and Caldwell Woods. When I visited, there was an exhibit about missing and murdered indigenous women (MMIW). Long ignored, indigenous women are by far the most endangered when it comes to the murder or disappearance of these women. Women on reservations are ten times more likely to end up part of the MMIW, and in just the last few years (2019, I believe) over 5,500 indigenous women were missing or murdered. Too long this has been a crisis that has been ignored by majority culture. Although the exhibit as a whole was very powerful, Nayana LaFond's contribution to the exhibit was especially moving. She paints images of MMIW that have been provided to her by family or friends of the missing women. She explained that she hadn't intended for it to become a project, but once she started receiving dozens of requests for paintings she couldn't turn down some and not others. The Mitchell Museum will be doing some programming soon, and I think that part of that programming in May will be related to MMIW education and causes. There's a small parking lot in back--probaly enough for three to four cars. But when I was here (on a Tuesday in April), I was the only one here for most of the time so I think parking won't be an issue. For an adult non-tribal member, entrance was only $7 (2023). There is a lift (not an elevator) from the main floor to the lower level, but I'm not sure if there's any way to ascend to the second floor besides the stairs so you may want to inquire about that if climbing the stairs would be difficult.

Wow, this place is the local hidden gem I thought it was.  I tried to come here a couple of years…read moreago, but it was closed due to Covid.  It's a quiet, unassuming place but for just a modest $5 admission ($5 for seniors, and $7 otherwise), you can see a lot of neat American Indian artifacts, artwork, history, and information.  I really enjoyed my 75 minute visit, and that's maybe all you may need (1-2 hours) to peruse their two floors.  You can look at my photos for an idea of what's there, but I had 2 notable personal highlights.  One was seeing a map of North America that showed the names of 1200 tribes(!) and their locations, and that was quite impressive I thought.  Most you wouldn't know, but many of the famous ones you would, from movies and what not.  The other highlight was meeting and chatting with Josee Starr, the staffer that initially greeted me.  There were actually 2 friendly staffers - her and a fellow named Joseph Gackstetter, but I met Josee upon entering and she was the only one there at the time.  After my milling around, I finally got up my nerve to ask her if she was at least partially American Indian as she looked the part, and yippee-yayaay, she told me she was 99% American Indian and 1% French (fur trader French).  Very cool, and she has tracked her genealogy back 9 generations!  I only really knew of one other full native American in my life (an old work colleague), so this was a treat.  I also took the opportunity to give her fellow staffer Joseph some hell for being just a regular Caucasian working here (lol, and he took the kidding in stride).  I highly recommend this place for some cultural enlightenment, and also as a great place to educate youngsters.

The new Chicago Board of Trade museum is highly recommended for anyone interested in Chicago's…read morefinancial history and the legendary CBOT trading floors. The museum was expertly curated with real trading floor artifacts and an immersive video which helps capture the energy of the old trading pits. Free admission makes it easy to drop in as well.

Great vibe and wanted to check out the place. It's like a 45 minute walk through tour on your own…read moreor you can have a tour guide to walk you through. Very friendly and enjoyed it.

I never knew that Chicago has such rich maritime history. So many great exhibits. I found the…read moreLaLady Elgin and Eastland disasters fascinating.

This contemporary art gallery is just off an alley on Franklin. The large window wall gives the…read moresmall space on the first floor a bit more breathing room.

Highly recommend and a fantastic counterpoint to the Expo Chicago art fair. Yes, it is a…read moresubstantial schlep from the main touristy part of the city, but worth it. Loved seeing the wide variety of artists showing there. It was absolutely packed, but we were still able to get in and around fairly quickly (as we needed to). Extra cool that they offered wrapping stations for purchased pieces. Hope to go back again in the future. Loved it.