Chicago Athenaeum

The Chicago Athenaeum is an international museum of architecture and design, based in Chicago, Illinois. The museum focuses on the art of design in all areas of the discipline: architecture, industrial and product design, graphics, landscape architecture, and urban planning. Among its goals is to advance public education on how design can positively impact the human environment.

The museum was founded in 1988 in Chicago and later on developed satellite extensions in Schaumburg, Illinois and Galena, Illinois. In Schaumburg, the Museum maintains a 20-acre International Sculpture Park with important works of contemporary art from Poland, Israel, Finland, Norway, Germany, Greece and Switzerland.

The museum aims to improve public knowledge and awareness on architecture and design, and how these two fields can affect human environment and the quality of life. It has held exhibitions on architecture and design in several countries, and also holds several international programs abroad. It currently maintains offices and operations in Chicago, Schaumburg, and Galena, Illinois, as well as Dublin, Ireland and Athens, Greece.

Every year, the museum organizes Good Design Award, which were founded in Chicago in 1950. The Museum also co-organizes the American Architecture Awards, the International Architecture Awards, and the Green Good Design Awards together with the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.

The museum's president is Christian Narkiewicz-Laine. The vice president is Ioannis Karalias who is also chief curator and director of design; the director of administration is Lary Sommers, and the director in Europe and COO is Kieran Conlon.

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