Our Guide to Must-Experience Cultural Events

Looking for something that feeds your mind as much as your spirit? This roundup of rich cultural happenings takes you from the West Side to downtown — from surreal theatre and historical archives to revolutionary art and immersive storytelling. Each event invites reflection on culture, justice, and creativity in motion.

Elizabeth Catlett: A Black Revolutionary Artist and All That It Implies — Art Institute of Chicago

This sweeping retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago honors Elizabeth Catlett, one of the most influential Black artists of the twentieth century. Spanning seven decades, the show traces her journey from Chicago to Mexico, where she created bold sculptures and linocuts that center the dignity of Black people, especially women and workers.

The exhibition pairs Catlett’s artistic mastery with her political conviction, offering an intimate look at how she fused art and activism. Visitors can expect to see iconic works like Sharecropper alongside lesser-known pieces that reveal the depth of her revolutionary practice.

Measure of a Man — Raven Theatre

Measure of a Man places audiences inside a haunting, dreamlike version of Chairman Fred Hampton’s West Side apartment at 2337 W. Monroe St. on the Near West Side — the site of his 1969 assassination. In this surreal one-act play, the Illinois Black Panther leader moves between memory and myth, confronting the triumphs and tragedies of his revolutionary life while grappling with what it means to fight, die, and live again for the movement he built.

The production blends poetic language with historical resonance, creating an atmosphere that feels both intimate and cosmic — a meditation on justice and the unbreakable will of a revolutionary spirit.

Praise & Protest: Voices of the Chicago Black Renaissance — Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection

At the Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection in Woodson Regional Library, Praise & Protest explores the vibrant creative movement that reshaped the South Side from the 1930s through the 1950s. The exhibition highlights writers, painters, and activists of the Chicago Black Renaissance, revealing how art and intellect became tools of both expression and resistance.

Visitors can encounter rare manuscripts, photographs, and artwork that illuminate how culture served as a form of protest long before today’s social movements — an essential stop for anyone invested in the roots of Black Chicago’s creative power.

OH, YOU’VE GOT TO COME BACK TO THE CITY — GRAY Chicago

In his latest exhibition, OH, YOU’VE GOT TO COME BACK TO THE CITY, artist and urbanist Theaster Gates turns to the material and emotional memory of the West Side that shaped him. On view at GRAY Chicago, the show transforms the gallery into a meditation on decay, renewal, and belonging — a continuation of the work Gates has done for years reclaiming discarded materials and overlooked spaces across the city.

Drawing from his upbringing in North Lawndale and his lifelong study of urban change, Gates fuses tar, stone, wood, and clay into sculptural assemblages that feel both ancient and immediate. Each piece recalls the physical labor and spiritual endurance that define Chicago’s neighborhoods — particularly those that have endured disinvestment yet remain full of life and creativity.

In Good Company — Theatre Y

Part performance, part walking meditation, In Good Company turns the city into a stage. Produced by Theatre Y, the immersive, site-specific work invites audiences to journey through Chicago neighborhoods, listening to stories of connection, displacement, and belonging that unfold in everyday spaces.

Each performance route is unique, blending movement, dialogue, and community participation. It’s an experience that invites West Siders to slow down and see their surroundings — and each other — in new ways.

Freedom in Form: Richard Hunt — Loyola University Museum of Art

Chicago-born sculptor Richard Hunt, one of the most prolific public artists in the nation, is celebrated in this sweeping retrospective at the Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA). Freedom in Form traces Hunt’s seven-decade career through monumental welded steel sculptures, delicate sketches, and rarely seen studio artifacts, revealing how his abstract forms embody freedom, resilience, and the Black creative tradition in Chicago.

The exhibition not only honors Hunt’s technical brilliance but also situates his work within a broader conversation about civic life and cultural memory — a through line that connects his art to the city’s social fabric and public spaces.

Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s–70s — Chicago History Museum

An illuminating exhibition that traces the power of visual culture in Chicago’s social movements, Designing for Change presents over 100 posters, fliers, signs, magazines, and books from the 1960s and ’70s, alongside works by a new generation of “artivists” carrying the legacy forward.

Free Spirit Friday at Douglass Park: Creative Pathways Film Premiere — Free Spirit Media & Douglass Park

Join Free Spirit Media for this free screening event showcasing short films created by Chicago’s next generation of storytellers through its 2025 Creative Pathways Production Cohort. Titles include LLUVIA, SKATE OR DIE, and NORMAL — alongside an encore of a film from the 2024 cohort.

1619: The Journey of a People, The Musical

Experience the nationally acclaimed production at the DuSable Museum. Through hip hop, jazz, and powerful ensemble storytelling, this two-hour musical commemorates the struggles, recognizes the heroes, and celebrates the legacy of America’s African sons and daughters—from the origins of American slavery through Reconstruction, the Great Migration, the Civil Rights era, and modern movements for justice.

Black Harvest Film Festival

Celebrating its 31st year in 2025, the Black Harvest Film Festival is Chicago’s annual showcase for Black film across the diaspora. Born from an urgent need to celebrate the Black experience, the Black Harvest Film Festival unites filmmakers and audiences to showcase the power of Black cinema. This annual festival highlights emerging and established talents, and historical narratives, enriching the landscape of Black culture. The festival curates both short and feature-length films, proudly presenting influential auteurs and emerging filmmakers of color alongside each other.