Skip to Content

Research Center

About Us

Resources at your fingertips

Home to the Art Institute’s archival collections, research library, and academic engagement programs, the Research Center is an incubator for new art historical ideas and student training.

The Research Center holds millions of resources on the global history of art, architecture, and design. Our collections have sparked new discoveries for faculty and students, industry professionals, writers, filmmakers, curators, and art researchers at all levels. We welcome college-level class visits, individual appointments, and students who are curious about art museum careers.

Explore the catalog Library Archives Tools Internships

Research in Action

  •
    Exhibition Highlight
    “Worldviews” explores contemporary artists’ perspectives on psychic and earthly landscapes, challenging us to see the world as an artist might.
  • Digital Publication
    Ancient Egyptian Art at the Art Institute of Chicago

    Expansive in its timeline and its range of media, this richly illustrated digital publication features more than one hundred works from the Art Institute’s collection of ancient Egyptian art.
  • Two side-by-side black-and-white photos show Frida Kahlo on the left and Mary Reynolds on the right. Kahlo has her dark hair pulled back with braids crossed over her head, wears large dangling silver earrings, and has a cigarette in her hand. Reynolds looks to the right; her closely cropped light hair is topped with a small black cap, and she wears a dark fur coat.
    Frida Kahlo and Mary Reynolds: A Serendipitous Meeting
    by Caitlin Haskell, Tamar Kharatishvili, Alivé Piliado, and Tacy Wagner

    The curatorial team introduces these two formidable artists and shares how their brief encounter reorients our understanding of the ways artists inspire one another.

    • Research With Us

    Access our Library and Archival Collections

    Located just south of the Grand Staircase inside the Michigan Avenue entrance to the museum, the Franke Reading Room is a shared space in which researchers can consult the collections of the Library and Archives.
    Make a Library appointment Make an Archives appointment

    Tools

    FAQs

    See all FAQs

    Visitors who want to see our space and exhibitions are welcome to walk through during the reading room’s public hours, Mon-Fri (closed Tues) from 1:30-5:00 pm.

    Researchers of high-school age and above can consult our collections during the reading room’s public hours, Mon-Fri (closed Tues) from 1:30-5:00 pm.

    Learn about the history of the Franke Reading Room; and see what is currently on view.

    Yes. Guests who seek to conduct research using the Library or Archives collections must secure an appointment in advance. Make an appointment to use the Library or the Archives.

    Yes. We host group or class visits on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings from 10:00-11:30 a.m. Please consult our Request a Class Visit page for more information.

    Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.
    Learn more

    Image actions

    Share

    Suggested Terms