Chicago’s art scene captures as much praise as the city. Named among the “top 25 art destinations,” art is everywhere in Chicago. From May through October each year, the Navy Pier Walk brings recognized artists, critics and curators together for one of the largest contemporary sculpture exhibits in the world. The Art Institute of Chicago showcases the largest collection of impressionist painting in the world outside of the Louvre in Paris. The Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), located in the heart of the Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago, is home of one of the nation’s largest and most diverse collection of thought-provoking art created since 1945. In addition to these “big three,” there are dozens of interesting specialty art institutions such as the Mexican Fine Arts Museum and the Vietnam Veterans Art Museum. Want to invest in a special piece of art? Check out the Chicago Arts District, a 12 square block area on the southwest side of town with a multitude of  galleries featuring work of local artists, sculptors and photographers.

Chicago’s performing arts scene also gets high marks for its vital and varied productions.  Broadway mega-hits like Chicago and Wicked, the wild and wacky Blue Man Group, dozens of local theater productions and classical performances at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre offer entertainment for every taste.