Enter one of Chicago’s many museums and a few things might happen — you may find yourself immersed in a legendary artist’s work, inside the world of your favorite superhero, or traveling through time learning more about the city’s past.
During the summer and fall, there’s no shortage of eye-opening exhibitions that cover everything from stained glass to contemporary art to Puerto Rican history and beyond. Here are just a few of the top museum and art exhibits happening in 2025 at Chicago’s diverse array of cultural institutions.
Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago
Oct. 18, 2025 – Feb. 22, 2026
Chicago is hosting the only U.S. stop for Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind, a highly anticipated exhibition highlighting key moments from Yoko Ono’s career. The retrospective will feature more than 200 works, including film and sound recordings, photos, installation, and archival materials that examine Ono’s contributions to performance, conceptualism, film, and music while inviting audiences to engage directly with her work.
Frida Kahlo’s Month in Paris
Art Institute of Chicago
Now open through July 13, 2025
Frida Kahlo is one of the world’s most celebrated painters, known for masterful works created in her home country of Mexico. Frida Kahlo’s Month in Paris at the Art Institute of Chicago displays 100 self-portraits, letters, photographs, and other objects from Kahlo’s work, many of which have never been seen in Chicago, and explores the profound impact that her 1939 trip to Paris had on her life and career.
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Beyond Amazing
Griffin Museum of Science & Industry
May 22, 2025 – Feb. 8, 2026
With great power comes great responsibility. This phrase has never been closer to home as a new exhibition exploring the Spider-verse swings into the interactive Griffin Museum of Science & Industry in Chicago’s culturally rich Hyde Park neighborhood. See props from the films, take photos with life-size statues of your favorite characters, explore interactive installations, and view rare comic books all in one place.
Explore more: Check out more nearby museums with our guide to Chicago’s Museum Campus South.
Archivos Vivos
Abel Arciniega, @tequilagraphics
The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
Now open through Jan. 17, 2026
Explore the emotional, cultural, and historical narratives across the Puerto Rican diaspora in Archivos Vivos, a stunning exhibition that emphasizes memory and resilience in the face of displacement. Archival materials such as vintage photos, historical documents, and found objects provide tangible memories of the Puerto Rican people rebuilding, healing, and reimagining their community in the face of loss.
Tiffany Lamps: Beyond the Shade
Driehaus Museum
Opening September 2025
When someone mentions Tiffany’s, your mind might jump to the luxury jeweler founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany. What you might not know, however, is that Tiffany’s son, Louis Comfort Tiffany, was a revered designer of stained lamp shades and windows. Tiffany Lamps: Beyond the Shade at the ornate Driehaus Museum explores how the younger Tiffany brought these now-iconic lamp shades to life using bronze, enamel, pottery, and glass to achieve his artistic vision.
Chicago Architecture Biennial
Chicago Architecture Center and citywide
Sept. 12, 2025 – Feb. 28, 2026
The Chicago Architecture Biennial, North America’s largest architecture and design exhibition, will launch its landmark 10th edition this fall. Held every other year, the event includes programs like site activations, pop-ups, tours, public lectures, and educational activities. This year’s theme is “Shift: Architecture in Times of Radical Change” and will feature projects by various artists from around the world in venues around the city. All events are free and open to the public.
History Lessons: Everyday Objects from Public Housing
National Public Housing Museum
Ongoing
This exhibition at the brand new National Public Housing Museum is centered around one question: “What is an object that tells a story about your life and experiences in public housing?” Featuring items from the past 90 years, the first year of the exhibition showcases items from public housing communities in Chicago, New York, and Houston that explore themes of family, true love, hopes, and dreams deferred.
Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s-70s
Chicago History Museum
Now open through Nov. 2, 2025
Powerful slogans, symbols, and imagery defined Chicago protest art in the ‘60s and ‘70s. This recently extended exhibition, Designing for Change, showcases more than 100 posters, fliers, signs, buttons, newspapers, magazines, and books expressing ideas on race, war, gender, sexuality, and other ideas that challenged societal norms of the time, highlighting Chicago’s rich history of activism.
Freedom in Form: Richard Hunt
Loyola University Museum of Art
July 11 – Nov. 15, 2025
Chicago-born artist Richard Hunt is regarded as a singular artistic talent of the 20th century. In Freedom in Form, Hunt’s personal belongings and video interviews provide essential context for how Hunt’s personal history and professional achievements intersected with Black Americans’ struggle for equality. The exhibition is accompanied by a 116-page, full-color catalogue.
Expanding the 50th: Shared Stories
Smart Museum of Art
Now open through July 13, 2025
In honor of the Smart Museum’s 50th anniversary, this South Side cultural institution is showcasing five decades’ worth of works from the museum’s breathtaking permanent collection. The exhibit tells the story of the museum’s history and ever-evolving mission by drawing on a treasure trove of more than 17,000 items, alongside new works commissioned specifically for the milestone anniversary.
