Chicago Architecture Center
Chicago Architecture Center
Opened in August 2018, the new Chicago Architecture Center is the city’s newest must-see cultural destination and home to everything architecture in Chicago.Download Project PDF
The 20,000-square-foot center at 111 East Wacker Drive is a one of a kind Chicago experience. Visitors can find world-famous river and walking tours, educational programs and new interactive exhibits that reveal the stories behind the city’s architectural wonders. Visitors will see first hand how Chicago’s design legacy has changed skylines around the world.
Visitors to the CAC will be greeted at the box office and orientation center on the ground level before chosing to taking an expert, docent-led tour or viewing the innovative exhibition spaces developed and executed by museum planning and design firm, Gallagher & Associates at your own pace. The premier exhibit is located in the Skyscraper Gallery on the second floor, in a dramatic space with 40-foot tall windows overlooking the Chicago River and the Michigan Avenue Bridge. The exhibit features supersized scale models of famous skyscrapers from Chicago and around the world including AS+GG’s 40-foot tall model of Jeddah Tower, which will be the world’s tallest building when completed in 2020.
The Chicago: City of Architecture Gallery, located on the first floor, will tell the story of how Chicago became the epicenter of modern architecture and design. The popular Chicago Model exhibit has expanded from the previous CAC space from 1,300 to 3,000 buildings and now features a film and light show that illuminates the model to illustrate Chicago’s early growth, rebirth after the Great Chicago Fire, first-ever skyscrapers, and today’s modernist masterpieces of steel and glass.
19 feb 19 | Offsite
Chicago’s Architecture Center Shines While Houston’s Waits to be Rebuilt after Harvey Flooding
Where there is water, there is an American city’s neonatal lifeline... MORE
6 sep 18| The Architect's Newspaper
The new Chicago Architecture Center offers informative, tangible experiences
Designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the Center’s spaces are designed to expand and contract with current and future exhibits... MORE
31 aug 18 | Architect Magazine
Look Inside the New Chicago Architecture Center
The organization formerly known as the Chicago Architecture Foundation opens in new riverfront digs today... MORE
31 aug 18 | Curbed
Chicago Architecture Center debuts new riverfront location to the public
The Chicago Architecture Foundation has a new name and a new home in Chicago... MORE
30 aug 18 | Chicago Magazine
The Chicago Architecture Center Opens Tomorrow. Here’s What to See
Who doesn’t love big models of buildings? ... MORE
30 aug 18 | WBEZ
What’s That Building? The Chicago Architecture Center
The Chicago Architecture Center will open a new museum-quality showcase of the city’s contributions to world architecture... MORE
29 aug 18 | Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Architecture Foundation has a new name and a new home
Skyscraper models are the stars of its engaging riverfront exhibition space. The oversized skyscraper models in the window, one of them 38 feet tall... MORE
29 aug 18 | Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Architecture Center takes its place as ‘must-see’ cultural destination
Calling Chicago’s rich history of architecture the “family jewels,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel cut the ribbon Wednesday... MORE
29 aug 18 | Chicago Reader
The Chicago Architecture Foundation is now the Chicago Architecture Center
The Chicago Architecture Foundation has a new name and new digs... MORE
29 aug 18 | Chicago Business Journal
Chicago Architecture Center opens
The all new Chicago Architecture Center held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday morning with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel... MORE
Client
Chicago Architecture Center
General Contractor
Turner Construction
Structural Engineering
WSP
MEP/FP Engineering
Diligent Design Group
Exhibit Design
Gallagher & Associates
Signage and Wayfinding
Forcade Associates
Lighting
Lightswitch
AV/ Acoustic Design
ARUP
AV Design/ Installation
Gand Sound Installations
2021
National AIA, Interior Architecture Award
2020
AIA Chicago, Interior Architecture Award, Citation of Merit
