Your Winter Essentials

Photograph of a young family—a woman, man, boy, and girl—standing together in a red-colored room before a lifelike horse mounted by a figure in a suit of armor. The figure carries a long jousting stick.

#1 A Family-Friendly Tour

This “road trip” through the museum, designed with families in mind, takes you to places everyone can explore and enjoy together—from famous paintings and sculptures to imagination-fueling armors and miniature rooms. Round out your trip with a visit to the Ryan Learning Center, where you can get creative or just unwind.

#2 Canova and Ancient Art

On December 7 at 6:00, curators Emerson Bowyer and Lisa Ayla Çakmak share how Canova brought mythic characters of Greece and Rome to life in 18th-century Europe, seeking to rival the beauty of ancient art even as he fought to preserve it. Registration is required.
#3 Expression through Dance

In four performances, each created for and presented in a specific gallery, local dance company the Seldoms demonstrates the power of dance to interpret and amplify art across genres. Stop by December 30 from 1:00 to 2:30 and see your favorite artworks from the collection in a dynamic new light.
#4 A Cabinet of Wonders

Join museum educator Jeff Nigro on December 8 at 2:00 for a close look at our iconic crèche, an elaborate Nativity scene that also features musicians, dancers, peddlers, and other slices of life in 18th-century Naples. This visitor favorite and highlight of the Chicago holiday season is on view November 16 through January 8.

Sculpture of a nude woman carved in mottled, smooth, taupe-colored stone is viewed from the side. The figure is in a crouched position, arms over her head.

#5 Claudel in Song

On January 6, Grammy Award–winning mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato graces Fullerton Hall with the Brentano Quartet for a special performance of Jake Heggie’s 35-minute song cycle Camille Claudel: Into the Fire. Join us at 2:00 for a conversation with Heggie and Camille Claudel curator Emerson Bowyer, and stay to experience the romantic, rebellious world of Claudel through Heggie’s powerful score. Registration is required.

Photo of a young medium-skinned man in a red shirt with long brown hair, the artist James Johnson, seated by a tree stump indoors and carving a head with an elongated snout out of light-colored wood with a small axe. Behind him, an artwork and a painted snowboard line the wall. The floor is covered lightly in wood shavings.

#6 James Johnson on Carving, Design, and Fashion

Get to know Tlingit artist James Johnson, who, with works like Lákt (Bentwood Box), carves and paints imagery in wood using a Northwest Coast style called “formline.” On December 14 at 6:00, Johnson and associate curator Andrew Hamilton discuss the artist’s work and how it informs his recent design collaborations with Lib Tech snowboards and Vans, registration required. And on December 15 from 2:00 to 3:30, Johnson will be in Gallery 261 to showcase his tools and discuss how they’re used—drop on by!

A woman with medium skin and a broad smile, the vocalist Meagan McNeal, wears a floral headdress and matching outfit. Seen from the torso up, her black top is almost completely covered by actual or artificial flowers in pink and white.

#10 Music for a New Year

Gather on the Grand Staircase on December 31 at 1:00 and bask in the radiant vocals of Chicago’s own singer/songwriter Meagan McNeal, whose styles span jazz, R&B, soul, hip hop, rock, and classical musical. Come as you are, and bring those you love!

Images: Antonio Canova. Madame Mère (Letizia Ramolino Bonaparte) (detail), 1805–7. The Devonshire Collections, Chatsworth, SC 96. © The Devonshire Collections, Chatsworth, reproduced by permission of Chatsworth Settlement Trustees/Bridgeman Images; Photo courtesy of the Seldoms; Crèche (detail), mid-18th century. Naples. Restricted gifts of Mr. and Mrs. James N. Bay and Linda and Vincent Buonanno and Family; Eloise W. Martin Legacy Fund; restricted gifts of Ruth Ann Gillis and Michael McGuinnis and Mrs. Robert O. Levitt; Charles H. and Mary F. Worcester Collection Fund; Camille Claudel. Crouching Woman, about 1884–85. Musée Camille Claudel, Nogent-sur-Seine. Photo by Marco Illuminati; James Johnson. Photo courtesy of the artist; The Cardsharps (detail), about 1595. Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas; Meagan McNeal. Photo courtesy of the artist.