The Renaissance Society

The content of the display changes from time to time. This time it's four paintings and one movie. The movie is interesting if you read the narratives. If you have extra time to hang out at uchicago then this could be an interesting place.

One of my favorite places to visit because the gallery routinely shows artists commercial galleries may not be able to It's especially bettee when there's enough time to walk the magnificent campus I've attached some photos of sculptor Richard Rezac's show that show the space

A very small gallery space, but it’s free and they have rotating exhibits. I wouldn’t go out of your way to visit, but if you have some extra time you could pop in!

Sadly, the no exhibitions available on our visit, despite saying that they are open. A wasted trip.

Great for art fans who like high ceilings. Not easy via public transit unless you are coming from downtown. Why is Hyde Park so hard to get to? We may never know.

Really small museum, really just one work of art. Make sure when you ask for a description of the art before walking in, as they don't have any info inside. The art piece on display felt pretty exagerated on the importance, it was not much to think about or see.

Very thoughtful exhibit. A lot of great student energy. Worth the time to find.

Amazing space for contemporary art. Small but a must see! Check to make sure there's an exhibition on.

Of all the museums in Chicago, this one takes dedication to both get to and try to understand. It's one large room in an academic building deep in the heart of the campus. I've been to at least 10 to 15 exhibitions here over the past 20 years, and I'm still not a fan of conceptual art. I love contemporary art, but the exhibitions here can sometimes be confusing. Maybe that's the intention.

The Renaissance Society is easily one of Chicago's most interesting, critical, and dynamic contemporary art institutions. Don't be put off by the name - it's an historical anomaly - this place shows difficult, fascinating and beautiful contemporary art. Its curators write brilliantly and invite some fantastic artists. Plus - the gallery space itself is wonderful - sun streams in the windows, high ceilings, big enough to create all sorts of different assemblages. Their shows are often quite sparse, they never over fill the space. It's a little hard to find -- inside a U-Chicago Building -- but once you have found 5811 Ellis, find the stairs and go up 4 floors. Well worth the trip down to Hyde Park, if you happen to live in the north. Some great recent shows included Francis Alys & Paul Chan.

Great contemporary art collection. Free and open to the public, located on the fourth floor of Harper. The suicide narcissus exhibit was entrancing, and I look forward to seeing more top quality pieces and instillations.

It';s hard to say what is the best part of the Renaissance Society. They layout, the fascinatingly adept exhibitions, the exhibition catalogs, or the accessibility of their programs and events. From hosting great work to free artist talks the Ren is a welcoming place to modern art lovers that I'm lucky to have access to in Chicago. Definitely make a trip, and go to an opening if you can.