Arts Incubator

Chicago


Artist-activist Theaster Gates, in conjunction with the University of Chicago, has revamped what was an abandoned 1920s terra-cotta building at the edge of Washington Park into a space for community-based art projects and exhibitions. It's worth popping in to see what's showing. Free yoga classes, knitting groups and other events take place regularly.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Chicago attractions

1. Washington Park

0.42 MILES

Famed landscape architect Fredrick Law Olmsted designed stately Washington Park. It hosts heaps of community festivals and athletic fields for teams…

3. Nuclear Energy

0.94 MILES

The nuclear age began at the University of Chicago: Enrico Fermi and his Manhattan Project cronies built a reactor and carried out the world's first…

4. University of Chicago

0.98 MILES

Faculty and students have racked up more than 80 Nobel prizes within U of C's hallowed halls. The economics and physics departments lay claim to most of…

5. Smart Museum of Art

0.99 MILES

Named after the founders of Esquire magazine, who contributed the start-up money, this is the official fine-arts museum of the University of Chicago. The…

6. Bond Chapel

1.04 MILES

Built in 1926, the exquisite 150-seat chapel is worth a peek for its harmonious use of architecture, sculpture, woodcarvings and stained glass.

7. William Rainey Harper Memorial Library

1.09 MILES

Once inside the building, head to the East Tower's 3rd floor, where the reading room (called the Cathey Learning Center) offers a terrific chill-out spot…

8. Oriental Institute

1.15 MILES

The University of Chicago's famed archaeologists – Indiana Jones supposedly was based on one – cram their headquarters with antiquities they've unearthed…