Following the announcement from Governor Pritzker on January 18 concerning Chicago’s shift to Tier 2 COVID-19 mitigation standards, Shedd Aquarium announced that it is prepared to safely reopen to its members on Wednesday, January 27. Members will enjoy three full days of exclusive access before the aquarium reopens to the general public on Saturday, January 30.
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With the announcement that it is receiving the largest foundation grant in its history, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago has recently said the $2.5 million award from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation will enable the museum to take continued action in its mission to elevate contemporary art and artists, while accelerating the museum’s commitments to the values of IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, and access), during the challenges presented by the COVID pandemic. The MCA is one of 12 mid-sized cultural institutions across the country awarded funding from the Mellon Foundation’s new Art Museum Futures Fund, based in part on the vital function the museums serve in meeting the needs of their communities and their admirable response during the pandemic.
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Even though it may be closed to visitors, the Shedd Aquarium has invited new guests to the institution in an effort to further its important conservation efforts this spring. Joining with Tennessee Aquarium earlier this year, Shedd launched a new effort to safeguard the endangered Barrens Topminnow (Fundulus julisia) from extinction. Welcoming six individual fish from the species, Shedd began a head-start program for the fish, listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in October 2019. In the short time since its launch, the effort has already marked an important milestone.
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The Chicago History Museum today announced a community-based initiative, “In This Together” to collect digital records that capture personal experiences
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During its closure, the Adler Planetarium is doing their part to help the people of our planet during this unprecedented crisis. From utilizing equipment that now sits idle for scientific research and PPE production, to pushing a message about the importance of social distancing out to our community, the Adler staff and volunteer team have been busy working together against COVID-19.
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The Chicago History Museum today announced that Gary T. Johnson, president of the museum, is planning to retire. Johnson has led Chicago’s oldest cultural institution, which was founded in 1856, since 2005. A national search is being commenced for his successor.
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Back in the summer of 1988, 18 Chicago painters and sculptors assembled at the School of the Art Institute to design and build what has become one of the most wildly popular exhibitions it has showcased to date. In a fully immersive experience that melded art and recreation, these artists designed a unique indoor 18-hole mini-golf course comprised of stations as disparate as they were creative.
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History is all about storytelling, conveying not only facts and figures but facets of daily life, hopes, dreams and the very ethos that surrounded an event or time of interest. These are the meat and bones of truly meaningful stories of the past, stories that not only depict ideas about a historical period or event, but those that convey the very humanity of those central to the period’s focus. One of the best ways to tell such stories is through access to a physical place, ephemera or items stemming from the period or time in question. Examining such items and spaces offers a first-hand look at how a historical subject lived, their chief concerns, their daily life and the culture in which they lived.
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On August 21, 2017, a total solar eclipse will be visible in parts of the United States for the first time since 1979. In Chicago, at 11:54 am CST, the Moon will start to block our view of the Sun, covering up to 87 percent of it by 1:19 p.m. The last time Chicago was this close to the path of totality (when the Moon blocks the Sun completely) was 92 years ago in 1925. In celebration, the Adler Planetarium is throwing a giant block party, inviting everyone to come together to experience this rare celestial event as a community, and making it possible by offering free general admission to all.
Preview of the Adler Planetarium Zooniverse initiative’s 100th project, a celebration of 10 years of citizen science at the Adler. Read the preview.
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