Guides & Advice  : Illinois : 
Chicago

 
Frommer's Guide
INTRODUCTION
GETTING TO KNOW
DINING
ATTRACTIONS
Suggested Itineraries
Lincoln Park Attractions
Museums
Exploring Hyde Park
Exploring the 'Burbs
In & Around the Loop
North of the Loop
Especially for Kids
NIGHTLIFE
SHOPPING
ACTIVE PURSUITS
SPECTATOR SPORTS
TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO ART & ARCHITECTURE
FEATURES AND EVENTS
ATTRACTION Frommer
National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum

This museum houses one of the most stirring art collections anywhere -- and the only one of its kind in the world -- telling the story of the men who fought in Vietnam. Since the war, many of the veterans made art as personal therapy, never expecting to show it to anyone, but in 1981, a small group of them began showing their works together in Chicago and in touring exhibitions. The collection has grown to more than 700 paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures from all over the country and other countries, including Vietnam. Titles such as We Regret to Inform You, Blood Spots on a Rice Paddy, and The Wound should give you an idea of the power of the images in this unique legacy to the war. Housed in a former warehouse in the Prairie Avenue district south of the Loop, the museum is modern and well organized. An installation suspended from the ceiling, Above & Beyond, comprises more than 58,000 dog tags with the names of the men and women who died in the war -- the emotional effect is similar to that of the Wall in Washington, D.C. The complex also houses a small theater, a cafe open for breakfast and lunch, a gift shop, and an outdoor plaza with a flagpole that has deliberately been left leaning because that's how veterans saw them in combat. Allow 1 hour.

1801 S. Indiana Ave.Phone: 312/326-0270.Open: Tues-Fri 11am-6pm; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun noon-5pm.Admission $5 adults, $4 seniors and students with ID.Closed major holidays.Bus: 3 or 4.


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