Details
Lying between Lake Michigan to the east and the Loop to the west, Grant Park has been Chicago's front yard since the mid 19th century. Its northwest corner, north of Monroe Street and the Art Institute, east of Michigan Avenue, south of Randolph Street, and west of Columbus Drive, had been Illinois Central rail yards and parking lots until 1997, when it was made available for development by the city as Millennium Park. Today, Millennium Park trails only Navy Pier as a Chicago tourist attraction.
The city sought Boeing's financial support in the form of a $6 million donation. The purpose of the eventual $5 million donation was to fund a space for use as open-air gallery spaces to accommodate regular exhibitions of both visual arts and sculpture. The exhibitions primarily occur in the spring and summer months. The galleries were commissioned in December 2004 (after the park's first summer), and they provide necessary formal space for the presentation of public exhibitions of modern and contemporary art. Boeing also previously funded the Family Album photograph exhibition that debuted in Millennium Park during its opening weekend.
The galleries were constructed between March and June 2005. The south gallery is 19,200 square feet (1,780 m2) (240 by 80 feet (73 by 24 m)) and the north is 14,400 square feet (1,338 m2) (180 by 80 feet (55 by 24 m)). The galleries are surrounded by sycamore trees, which are very rare in Chicago. There is seating on a series of black granite steps, which match The Crown Fountain, along each gallery's east side. The South Gallery is connected to the fountain by a precast concrete staircase. The galleries are also paved in granite. The north and south galleries are physically separated by AT&T Plaza, which hosts Cloud Gate (The Bean).
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