Museums are more than just diversions or tourist attractions. A museum — assuming it’s doing its job — is a temple to the truth. It’s a nexus of rigorous research and varied perspectives, and an invitation to share difficult conversations. And when museums do fall short, the best of them acknowledge it and strive to do better. (One of them is included on this list.) We assembled this guide during an unprecedented chapter for the American museum. Here are some Chicago-area exhibits carrying the lessons of the past into the future.
“Living in the Shade”
The second exhibition to go into the rotating second-floor space of Chicago’s National Public Housing Museum, this show documents the green spaces that have been incorporated into New York City Housing Authority projects over the last century — their successes, their failures and how they reflected America’s rapidly changing urban landscapes.
Through Nov. 9 at the National Public Housing Museum, 919 S. Ada St., nphm.org
“After the Age of Dinosaurs”
Next time you’re feeling down, remember this: If life on Earth survived the apocalyptic event that wiped out the dinosaurs, surely you can handle whatever comes your way. Right? Anyway, you can learn how that all went down at the Field Museum’s just-opened exhibition, which delves into the first 15 million years post-asteroid.
Through Sept. 7, 2026, at the Field Museum, 1400 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive, fieldmuseum.org
“Tiffany Lamps: Beyond the Shade”
For a few decades around the turn of the century, sophisticates could own a piece of Tiffany Studios grandeur when the lauded glassmaker began manufacturing lamps for domestic use. Spanning the shift from oil to electricity, these fixtures — gathered at the Driehaus Museum for this exhibition — remain a masterclass in design.
Sept. 12 to March 15, 2026, at the Richard H. Driehaus Museum, 50 E. Erie St., driehausmuseum.org
“Tiffany Lamps: Beyond the Shade” is about the beautiful creations of Louis C. Tiffany’s studio, curated by Alexandra M. Ruggiero and now at the Driehaus Museum. (Driehaus Museum)
“Megiddo: A City Unearthed, A Past Imagined”
One hundred years ago, the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, then called the Oriental Institute, pursued its first major dig — in the ancient city of Megiddo, at the crossroads of West Asia, Egypt and the Mediterranean. You may know it by its Greek name, Armageddon. This new exhibit explores the city and the historic excavation in equal measure.
Sept. 18 to March 15, 2026, at the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures at the University of Chicago, 1155 E. 58th St., isac.uchicago.edu
Open House Chicago
The Chicago Architecture Biennial happens just once every two years, but this year, it coincides with the annual Open House Chicago for a weekend in October. The 2025 Open House Chicago introduces “neighborhood headquarters” based on the city’s South Side (Ramova Theatre in Bridgeport), West Side (Starling by Duo in North Lawndale) and North Side (KOVAL Distillery in Ravenswood), in addition to the usual home base at the Chicago Architecture Center in the Loop. Each offers materials, information and a place to gather before your expedition.
Oct. 18-19 at various locations; architecture.org
“Haunted History Tours”
In the city’s rush to develop the patch of lakeshore that would become Lincoln Park, it dug up what was then the city’s main cemetery. Many bodies were relocated to cemeteries like Rosehill, Graceland and Oak Woods — but not all. Resident ghost guy Adam Selzer unearths the Lincoln Park Zoo’s morbid past in a series of nighttime walking tours.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays from Sept. 30 to Oct. 29 at the Lincoln Park Zoo, 2400 N. Cannon Drive, lpzoo.org
A tour listens as Adam Selzer delivers a talk about the haunted history of Lincoln Park Zoo on Oct. 22, 2024. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
“Aquí en Chicago”
In 2019, a group of Pilsen students protested the Chicago History Museum for its dearth of material on local Latine history. Like so many institutions before it, the museum could have ignored the students, or puffed up some sort of defense. Instead, it got to work. This exhibit recounts that history through artifacts, photographs, first-person accounts, family objects and even sweet treats. The family behind El Nopal, a beloved former Pilsen bakery, gave the museum cafe exclusive permission to recreate its famed Hojarasca cookies during the exhibition run.
Oct. 25 to Nov. 8, 2026, at the Chicago History Museum, 1601 N. Clark St., chicagohistory.org
“American Prophets: Writers, Religion, and Culture”
Writers, whether devout or doubters, have long probed the religious psyche. A new exhibition at the American Writers Museum takes a closer look at the spiritual lives of famous authors and how it manifested in their works. Included: Flannery O’Connor’s rosary beads and Ursula K. Le Guin’s copy of the “Tao Te Ching,” annotated in her own hand.
Nov. 21 through fall 2026 at the American Writers Museum, 180 N. Michigan Ave., americanwritersmuseum.org
“World of Tomorrow: A Century of Progress”
The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition tends to hog the spotlight, but our city hosted another wildly successful world’s fair during its centennial year, 1933. The Elmhurst History Museum takes a closer look with an exhibition that opened last month.
Through Jan. 4 at the Elmhurst History Museum, 120 E. Park Ave., Elmhurst, elmhursthistory.org
“Windy City Times @40: Breaking News. Breaking Silence”
Like so many gay newspapers, the Windy City Times documented early milestones in LGBTQ representation and the devastation of HIV and AIDS at a time when the mainstream press looked the other way. The Gerber/Hart Library and Archives hosts a retrospective of this trailblazing publication, turning 40 this September.
Through Jan. 31 at the Gerber/Hart Library and Archives, 6500 N. Clark St., Floor 2, gerberhart.org
Hannah Edgar is a freelance writer.
FALL ARTS 2025
Look for all of our guides, Top 10 lists and critics’ picks for what’s coming: