Poetry is a place in Chicago. The Poetry Foundation, the AIA Award-winning home for poetry in downtown Chicago, is a serene minimalist building designed by Chicago-based architect John Ronan. When it opened in 2011, it became the physical embodiment of Poetry magazine founder Harriet Monroe’s Open Door policy. The inviting tree-lined courtyard leads into the building, which includes the Library, containing more than 30,000 volumes of poetry, and the Gallery, which hosts seasonally rotating exhibitions. The Foundation’s adaptable and acoustically perfected performance space hosts over 100 free poetry events annually.
Visitor Experience
Tour the main spaces of the only building in Chicago wholly devoted to the art of poetry, including the Library, the Gallery (displaying The Life of Poetry in Morden Tower exhibition); and the Performance Space, which will house a new soundscape by Chicago interdisciplinary artist Jared Brown.
