Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Photo Op
For a great photo op, walk on Randolph Street toward
the lake in the morning when the sun, rising in the east over
the lake, hits the cliff of buildings along South Michigan
Avenue, giving you the perfect backdrop for an only-
in-Chicago picture.
Moments
The following attractions are listed from north to south.
Chicago Cultural Center
The Chicago Cultural Center
was built in 1897 as the city's public library, and in 1991 it was trans-
formed into a showplace for visual and performing arts. Today, it's an
overlooked civic treasure with a basic Beaux Arts exterior and a
sumptuous interior of rare marble, fine hardwood, stained glass, and
mosaics of Favrile glass, colored stone, and mother-of-pearl inlaid in
white marble. The crowning centerpiece is Preston Bradley Hall's
majestic
Tiffany dome
Finds
, said to be the largest of its kind in the
world.
The building also houses one of the
Chicago Office of Tourism
visitor centers, which makes it an ideal place to kick-start your visit.
If you stop in to pick up tourist information and take a quick look
around, your visit won't take longer than 15 minutes, but the
Cultural Center also schedules an array of art exhibitions, concerts,
films, lectures, and other special events (many free), which might
convince you to extend your time here. A long-standing tradition is
the 12:15pm Dame Myra Hess Memorial classical concert every
Wednesday in the Preston Bradley Hall.
Guided architectural tours of the Cultural Center run at 1:15pm
on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.
78 E. Washington St.
&
312/744-6630,
or 312/FINE-ART for weekly events.
www.cityofchicago.org/exploringchicago. Free admission. Mon-Thurs 10am-7pm;
Fri 10am-6pm; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 11am-5pm. Closed major holidays. Bus: 3, 4,
20, 56, 145, 146, 147, 151, or 157. Subway/El: Brown, Green, Orange, or Purple line
to Randolph, or Red Line to Washington/State.
Chicago ArchiCenter
Chicago's architecture is one of the city's
main claims to fame, and a quick swing through this center, run by
the well-regarded
Chicago Architecture Foundation
(conveniently
located across the street from the Art Institute), will help you under-
stand why. Exhibits include a scale model of downtown Chicago,
profiles of the people and buildings that shaped the city's look, and
a searchable database with pictures of and information on many of
