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Ryan Learning Center

The museum’s hub for learning and creativity

RLC Hours


No costs or tickets—the Ryan Learning Center is always free to the public.

days hours
Mon 11–3
Tue–Wed Closed
Thu–Sun 11–3

RLC Location


A light filled hall showing the entrance to the Ryan Learning Center A light filled hall showing the entrance to the Ryan Learning Center

Find us on the first floor of the museum’s Modern Wing. Turn left after you enter at 159 East Monroe.

About the RLC

The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Learning Center (RLC) is the museum’s hub for learning and creativity, a place where you can find art making and interactive experiences all the time.

Whether you’re visiting as a family, as part of a school group, with friends, or on your own, there’s something in the RLC for you. Find out what you can do.

Fall Programs for Families and Teens

Drop by the Ryan Learning Center this summer to explore collage, grid art, printmaking, and more.

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Family Day

Drop by the museum on Saturday, November 16 to explore how artists reimagine tradition through a day of art making, in-gallery activities, artist-led demonstrations, storytelling, and more.

Learn more about Family Day.
Teens in red aprons look at a screenprint they've made of the Chicago skyline before the lake.

Teen Studio Workshops

Teens are invited to register for Teen Studio Workshops exploring a variety of media and techniques. Take a deep dive into printmaking, collage, and more with inspiration from our latest exhibitions.

Explore all teen programs.

Make With Us

Families, teens, and visitors of all ages—you are invited to come by the Ryan Learning Center’s Art Exchange every day the museum is open to find creative activities and inspiration. Please note that the Art Exchange cannot accommodate visiting student, youth, or daycare groups.

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The Artist’s Studio

Take part in a studio project inspired by a work of art in the museum’s collection or a special exhibition. Designed by museum educators and artists, these activities are accessible to children but just as satisfying for adults.

Join us through December 9 for the Artist’s Studio: Story Columns to practice architectural drawing inspired by Germane Barnes: Columnar Disorder.

Learn more about the Artist’s Studio.
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JourneyMaker

Want to create your own very own museum tour? Visit the JourneyMaker kiosks in the RLC and design a personalized gallery adventure full of fun ideas for looking and responding to art together. Choose from eight different story lines, select your works of art, and print your guide—and then head out to the galleries. You can also make your guide before you arrive.

Generous support for JourneyMaker is provided by the Woman’s Board of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Experience With Us

The Ryan Learning Center is a sensory-rich space with areas for exploration and play, including spots for building, reading, imagination, and hands-on discovery. It’s also a place where we showcase the creative work of young artists.

Teagan Murphy, Flared Gold

My Chicagos: A Teen Photography Competition

This winter, we asked teens across the city to submit photos that reflected their Chicagos. Over 125 high schoolers responded, sharing works that reflect their unique perspectives on what this place means to them.

Stop by the museum to see 30 photographs selected by our panel of judges on view in the Ryan Learning Center’s McCormick Foundation Gallery through January 10, 2025, or explore all submissions in our virtual gallery.

My Chicagos: A Virtual Gallery
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The Elizabeth Morse Multisensory Gallery

Look, touch, and listen to the diverse range of materials that artists use to create their works of art. Plus, try your hand at a pattern-rubbing station featuring patterns inspired by objects in the collection. Located adjacent to the RLC entrance, the Multisensory Gallery is accessible whenever the museum is open.

Dive deeper into your sensory exploration by listening to audio stops available through the Art Institute’s free app. You’ll find us at stops 51–54 and 56.

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The Trott Gallery

Art + Science: A Horse of a Different Color

Put on a lab smock, grab a research guide, and play your way through this interactive installation exploring how museum conservators use art and science to care for works, like the two historic carousel horses on display.

This project is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. OISE 1743748.

Learn more about this installation.

Learn With Us

Whether you’re ready to plan your visit or want to dive deeper into programs and resources for learning with the museum, we have tips and tools for you below.

A teacher participates in a workshop at the Ryan Learning Center.

Educator Resources

Explore accessible resources for your classroom, find support from experienced museum educators for integrating works of art in your teaching, and learn more about professional development opportunities.

Explore resources
A teen uses headphones in the museum

Teens

Meet new people. Look at art. Make art. Be inspired. Find out how to get involved in internships and programs designed by teens, for teens.

Find teen opportunities
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Families

With free admission for kids under 14 and Chicago teens under 18, the Art Institute is the perfect place for a creative outing with the whole family.

Plan your family visit
Three students working together at a desk.

K–12 Student Groups

The museum is a great place for you and your students to learn. Choose from a wide variety of museum experiences that support classroom learning and meet students where they are.

Plan your student group visit

Get in Touch

Volunteer or Intern with the RLC

Find out how to become involved as a volunteer or teen intern in the Ryan Learning Center.

Feedback or Questions

Let us know about your experience, or share a picture of something you made at the museum.

Email ryanlearningcenter@artic.edu.

Sign up for the RLC enewsletter for updates.

FAQs

No, you never need a museum ticket to visit the RLC. It is free every day the museum is open, Thursday–Monday, and our hours are 11:00–3:00.

Everyone is welcome in the RLC. We have activities that are designed for specifically kids and families, but other areas are inviting to visitors of all ages.

The public space of the RLC, the Art Exchange, is designed for families and individual visitors; we are not able to accommodate groups. School groups can schedule a museum visit with our K–12 Student Experiences team. The museum also offers opportunities specifically for college and university groups.

We do not offer the RLC as a space for private events. There are several other spaces in the museum that are available to rent as an event venue.

Yes! Illinois educators receive free admission to the museum. Fill out this form to receive your complimentary ticket.

The RLC offers drop-in art-making opportunities every day the museum is open, and we also offer one-day family workshops and teen studio workshops throughout the year. We do not offer ongoing art classes for young people. The art school affiliated with the museum, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, does offer classes for children through teens. You can find more information at SAIC Continuing Studies.

The RLC Art Exchange offers a range of materials for early learners, including blocks, soft and board books, and stacking toys and puzzles. The ongoing art-making activity is also appropriate for young children with help from their caregivers.

Museum admission is free for Chicago teens under the age of 18, thanks to the extraordinary generosity of Glenn and Claire Swogger and the Redbud Foundation.

Major support for education at the Art Institute is provided by the James and Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation, The Jane Wilson and David Mayhew Stone Charitable Trust, Nancy R. Levi, Cari and Michael J. Sacks, Elissa Efroymson and Adnaan Hamid, the Terra Foundation for American Art, the Elizabeth Morse Genius Charitable Trust, the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation, an anonymous donor, and The Barker Welfare Foundation.

Additional support is provided by the Burt Family Foundation, Dancing Skies Foundation, Dr. Scholl Foundation, Charles and M.R. Shapiro Foundation, and The Siragusa Family Foundation.

BMO is the Corporate Sponsor of Chicago Public Schools Engagement at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

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