Location and Facilities

The American Academy of Art is located in downtown Chicago with convenient access to public transportation and many of Chicago’s most notable museums and galleries. The school is located at 332 South Michigan Avenue, two blocks south of the Art Institute of Chicago and two blocks west of Lake Michigan. Students, staff and guests enjoy a view of north Grant Park from the library and the Bill L. Parks Gallery. We are within walking distance of Metra trains and just blocks from all CTA lines. Parking garages are also located within a block of the school.

With many transportation options to choose from, students and faculty find frequent opportunities to explore nearby cultural resources like the Art Institute of Chicago, the Harold Washington Library, the Chicago Cultural Center, Millenium Park and the Museum of Contemporary Art. We encourage our students to take advantage of the resources that the surrounding community has to offer.

The school occupies about 45,000 square feet on the second and third floors of the 332 South Michigan building with a private entrance at street level. This facility houses all of our classrooms, faculty, staff and administrative offices, and two student lounges, as well as the Irving Shapiro Library and the Bill L. Parks Gallery. The school occupies about thirty classrooms, including twenty specialized studios and five digital media labs.

We have created a unique atmosphere in the halls of the Academy by using a number of display cases to highlight the work of alumni and current students, making our halls both a tribute to the Academy’s past and a glimpse into its future. Student work is rotated regularly, and teachers often use the cases to display exceptional work completed in their classes.