Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, Illinois

What is Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago?

The museum works like a series of galleries, each with its own curated exhibition during the year. Shows may use loans, works from the permanent collection or both, so no two visits are quite alike. The collection itself runs to thousands of objects of postwar art, with names such as Andy Warhol, Alexander Calder, Kara Walker, Jasper Johns and Cindy Sherman.

Its holdings trace pop art, minimalism, conceptual art and late surrealism from the 1940s through the 1970s, then 1980s postmodernism and newer painting, sculpture, photography, video and installation. The museum also stages dance, theater, music and other live performance, so check the calendar if you would like to catch a show. The building on East Chicago Avenue was designed by architect Josef Paul Kleihues.

History of Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago

Since opening in 1967, the MCA has hosted several important firsts, including the first U.S. exhibition of Frida Kahlo and the first solo museum show of Jeff Koons. A later Koons exhibition set an attendance record, and a 2017 show of work by Takashi Murakami now holds the record for the most visitors.

Visiting Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago: tips

The museum is listed as wheelchair accessible. Plan on one to two hours, depending on what is showing. The Chicago Water Tower and the Loyola University Museum of Art are each about 0.2 mile away, and the Driehaus Museum is about 0.3 mile away, so the Near North Side makes a good half-day loop. Food and a hotel are both within about 0.1 mile of the entrance.