So Cool I highly recommend this place to everyone Safe Clean Fun! Lots of great photography to see.

We just discovered the Museum of Contemporary Photography and I don't know why it took us so long. We went to a a discussion led by Kristin Taylor, the Curator of Academic Programs and Collections. It was stimulating and enlightening. The museum is technically free, but, there is there is a donation box in the front of the entrance, feel free to donate! The actual exhibit area is 3 floors, but the actual exhibit area is small and located in a Columbia College building, Definitely check out the second floor. They have an inventory of approximately 15000 photos, so they have lots of material for exhibits. In fact, there are new exhibits every couple of months. They have well known and lesser known photographers in their collection, all of them interesting and worth a look. I highly suggest checking out their website for the current and upcoming exhibits and events.

It is very enjoyable space with Good exhibits. I really enjoy how The museum used everysingle space to present great artists! They do also offer events and programming.

Free admission. Great collection. Not so big. Save time with making reservation online. But they take walk ins too. Bag needs to be checked in (free).

Attended with a group and had a private docent discussion about Portraits or the perception of. Many of the photos featured and in the collection are by former students of Columbia. Small primary exhibit LOVE on the first floor.

One of the best FREE museums in Chicago for lovers of modern art. Extremely unique pieces that get rotated all the time so you can get a fresh perspective every couple months. Multiple pieces of art work that challenge your inner beliefs with a wide variety of styles from B/W stills, to vibrant pictures with colors popping off the wall, and multiple video pieces to round out the collection.

Free museum (donations appreciated). Exhibits rotate but you can check the website to see what is on display at the time of your planned visit. Air conditioned facility, friendly staff, and just a walk away from the Wabash Corridor to see huge murals. A+

Admittedly, there wasn't a lot to see, but the work present was still very interesting. It's definitely worth stopping by if in the area.

It is a very small museum but with great art. You can go through the installations in less than an hour. I'd suggest leaving a donation at the end of the tour. The only bad thing is that the staff is very rude and has an attitude, the girl sitting on the front desk glared at me and didn't say anything as I was leaving and saying goodbye. I'm pretty sure the only thing I did while in there was look at the photographs and art so I'm not sure why she glared at me like that.

Entrance is not on Michigan Ave. Great intimate museum inside Columbia College building. Wonderful photos and art.

Free to enter (at least when I did, May 2023). It's a nice space in which you can take your time looking at the exhibit. Would come back if I'm in the area!

Small space but with several photo expositions. Free entrace

Great free exhibition. Photos with some edge yet still family friendly.

Small, quiet, good museum. Just wish they wouldn't put the TV on with some video in the middle of the exhibition. It makes reading difficult with a loud voice shouting in your ear. And wish the staff knew what was on and could answer visitors' questions. Other than that, great museum. Will go back again.

Last day in Chicago we visited a little museum of Columbia College , the museum of Contemporary Photography. These days ( and watch – until July) there is an exhibition of College collogue Dawoud Bey devoted to anniversary of September 15th 1963 bombing black community on the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Al. (2012) Collection belongs to Birmingham Museum of Art. Bey diptyched feature of portrait of a child at the same age as one of those killed paired with a portrait of an adult at the age the child would have been in the year 2013. The images are remarkable. Also there were photographs illustrating the protests to segregation laws in 50th-60th. Just reminding us about that ugly period of our history. And inspiring to treasure the diversity of our country were each race each faith is equal. Thank you to the college developing this museum.

This was definitely a small museum, but it would be worth checking out briefly if you’re interested in contemporary photography and like photos that sometimes deal with social issues or climate change, etc. (I’m sure the exhibit focuses change however) It’s very bright and clean inside with a friendly person waiting inside the entrance where you can optionally donate towards the museum.

I'm not a big fan of Photo Art, but this museum is cool and modern. Worth a try.

Small gallery. If you're into contemporary photography and want to just feed your eyes and mind, it's a great place to be. But you'll probably go through the whole exhibit in less than 30mins.

Went on a Tuesday afternoon and admission was free. The current exhibits were very beautiful and thought invoking. The whole museum takes about an hour or less to get through!

This is my must-go place in Chicago every time I visit the city. Friendly staff, free entry, and an absolutely fantastic job of curating thought-evoking exhibits. I’ve never been disappointed, and I always learn something about the human experience.

I stop by every time I am in Chicago. It is a pretty small museum on two levels. Sometimes the exhibits are interesting, and sometimes the are not. Usually it is worth an hour of your time to visit.

Great 3-story museum with rotating exhibits. Could expect to spend 45 minutes - 1 hour, more if you take your time. And it's free!

Small but mighty. Powerful exhibits made very accessible. A great place to spend some time when downtown. Highly recommend! Wonderful curatorial staff, too.

I must admit that the exhibits (the work of about 6 artists in total) were a bit esoteric for my taste. Admision is free and the wall space consists of two rooms on the first floor, some work going up the stairs and then one large room on the second floor. For me, it took about 20 minutes to view all but as I mentioned above, the work(s) were not my cup of tea.

This discovery is fantastic. I went to my first exhibition of Ralph Arnold's work. The depth and breadth of the artwork that was skillfully incorporated into the space as well as the quality of the gallery guide that was offered for the exhibition really impressed me.

This is a nice little museum that you can kill an hour in. You can make reservations, but I didn't need to on a Thursday afternoon. I think a lot of people would assume a museum all about photography would be boring, but that's far from the truth!

I have been there in July 2019 and it was a good place to visit and it showed a lot of black and white photos and photo from way back and it was very interesting.

Interesting place to be. Not overwhelming at all. My favourite works in this visit was Tom Jones’ p.s. the security guards of the building is really lovely too

Every time I come to Chicago I make a point to visit this Museum. Free is free but the wonderful and ever changing collections will have you donating too.

I wish there were more to see... a floor dedicated to student work would be great!

A small but unique and interesting museum. I plan to go back as they update their exhibit monthly.

Great little gallery with some thought provoking pieces in each collection. Took about 30 minutes to go through the full gallery and read everything. Well worth a stroll if you like photography, or just appreciate art. It's free. Note that they lock the main entrance on Sundays, but you can access it easily from the other entrance.

Enjoyable. Galleries are clean, quiet, and spacious. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable. Tours are informative and unhurried. Curation includes talented artists from of diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Two small floors. Different exhibitions constantly. Donations accepted. You can visit it all in less than an hour.

We saw the "Beautiful Diaspora" exhibit this spring. Our family spent an hour experiencing the art and could easily have stayed twice as long if we'd arrived earlier. Stunning photographs in this exhibit. Some jarring. Some breathtaking. Most thought-provoking. Exactly what I hoped this collection would be. Excellent booklets available for free to give more detail and background on the pieces. Admission is free (donations encouraged). Reservations recommended. This museum is right on Michigan Avenue, next block south of Congress Plaza Hotel. So glad we finally discovered this gem!

Lovely people greet you. Good photos for Black equality. We need all the help we can get. It is small but then you don't get as tired. No guards like the big ones

A hidden gem showcasing thought-provoking contemporary photographic works. The museum's exhibitions are engaging and offer a fresh perspective on visual storytelling through the lens of modern photography.