A treasured area of the Art Institute of Chicago may be reinvented with an expansion plan that will significantly increase the size of the gallery space.
This area of the museum is the Chicago Stock Exchange trading room, originally built between 1893 and 1894 and not torn down in the 1970s. Since then, the monumental room has served both as a pilgrimage point for museum visitors and as an event space available for rent.
While this room may not attract as many people as Grant Wood American GothicGeorges Seurat’s Sunday at La Grande JatteAs well as other masterpieces owned by the Art Institute, it is a rather large space within the museum, covering approximately 5,700 square feet. It is also of historical significance: the room currently contains the stock exchange’s original 19th-century templates as well as reconstructed elements.
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According to Chicago broadcasters WBEZ and chicago sun timesthe room may now be reshaped again as part of the Art School’s expansion plans, but no details have been announced so far.
“We have evaluated which part of the campus has the most potential for expansion, and the east side of the building — where the trading rooms are located — represents the area where the most gallery space could be added,” a museum representative told reporters. chicago sun times. “If growth on our campus does impact the trading room, our first priority will be to work with partners to find a new location for the space. No decisions have been made at this time.”
While the expansion remains in the spotlight, news of its financing came in 2024, when Art Institute trustee Aaron Fleischman and his partner Lin Lougheed provided $75 million for the project.
In a previous interview chicago sun timesJames Rondeau, dean of the School of Art, said the expansion was necessary because the museum has too many works that it cannot currently display. For example, Rondeau reports that the museum currently displays only 15% of its modern and contemporary art collection.
“We have very specific desires,” Rondo said in that interview. “We have no approved building projects.”
