Publications

The MCA tells stories about the museum’s exhibitions, programs, and history in many ways and through various media, both print and digital. This section of the site indexes our publications and productions, and invites you to explore them.

Featured Publication

We begin in the dark. For many years, artist Caroline Kent has used darkness as a starting point, a ground zero for a nuanced exploration of abstraction, language, and the limits of communication.

Painting with muted forms on a rich black background. — Caroline Kent, Further and Farther Than One Expects, 2015. Acrylic on unstretched canvas; 72 × 96 in. Collection of the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, T. B. Walker Acquisition Fund, 2016. Courtesy of the Artist; PATRON Gallery, Chicago; Casey Kaplan, New York; and Kohn Gallery, Los Angeles.
Photo: Rik Sfera.

MCA Stories

A vintage video still shows a busy art gallery filled with people looking at artworks and talking with one another. — Video Still

In 2017, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago celebrates fifty years as a hub of creativity and community in Chicago. To honor our anniversary, we have created MCA Stories, a website that gathers the stories of our community. Staff, artists, scholars, visitors, and patrons share memories of their favorite exhibitions and events, of encounters with artists and artworks, and of helping to build a new kind of museum from scratch.

MCA Magazine

Published two times a year, the MCA Magazine responds to issues that touch our museum and the larger arts community. Find insightful interviews with artists, rich photographs that capture our programs throughout the seasons, and more. MCA Members receive an exclusive subscription.

Blog: MCA DNA

Irregularly spaced words in black letters on a white background read: "imaginary portraits come completely from imagination, and modest one-syllable words. or, the colon." — Our blog posts cover a variety of subjects, from de-installs to favorite films. Designer Bryce Wilner reflected on the poetry of wall text strategically removed by MCA preparators (as seen in this image) in his post, Extremely Mello
Photo: Bryce Wilner © MCA Chicago

Launched in June 2014, the museum's blog MCA DNA invites writers, including artists and archivists as well as staff behind the scenes, to search out stories and express points of view that aren't often heard. Posts in many media, including video, sound, and image, give insight to the core of contemporary culture. Blogs created for past projects are archived archived here.

Websites

Fuchsia and purple gradient text reading "I WAS RAISED ON THE INTERNET" appears over a dynamic image of a bright flare of light and a computer keyboard.

Exhibition microsites are designed to be enduring resources, sharing a wealth of information from reading lists, playlists, installation views, images, and videos, to exhibition gallery guides, reviews, and more.

Video

Visitors gather around performers in large cloth spheres while a cameraman films the scene. — © MCA Chicago

Telling a range of stories about contemporary art and our community—from videos made by teens to studio visits to documentaries—MCA videos amplify the individual voices of the museum. Can't find what you're looking for? Reach out to the MCA's Library and Archives.

Audio

A young child sits with his or her back to the viewer. The child wears oversized headphones and sits next to a woman at a wooden bench and table. — Photo: Adrian Gaut

Our ever-expanding archive of audio recordings—including concerts, readings, talks, interviews, and tours—tell dynamic stories about what's happening in the museum. Can't find what you're looking for? Reach out to the MCA's Library and Archives.

Books

A group of catalogs with library call numbers are lined tightly next to one another on the right side of the frame. — Stack of 1980s catalogues
Photo: Nathan Keay © MCA Chicago

MCA books serve as enduring documentation of exhibitions and artworks. Recognized for groundbreaking design, many of these volumes serve as the first publication for an emerging artist or a pathbreaking treatment of developments in contemporary art.

Takeaways

A brochure cover shows shiny blue, curtain-like fabric gently folding across a black background. — Mika Horibuchi Brochure Cover

MCA takeaways assume various forms—broadsides, coloring books, pamphlets, postcards, and scavenger hunts—to name a few. Even after supplies run out, visitors often ask for more. So wherever possible, we’ll share downloadable files here.

Annual Reports

The front windows of the MCA illuminated with large close-up photographs of people. — Beat Strueli, Chicago, July 99, 1999. Silver dye bleach transparencies on Plexiglas; overall dimensions variable; 68 parts, each: 63 x 63 in. (160 x 160 cm). Collection Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, restricted gift of the MCA Collectors Forum; support for original commission from Sara Albrecht and Bill Nygren, 2000.17
Photo © MCA Chicago

The who, what, where, when, and how of any institution is revealed in its annual report. The MCA’s annual report lists the year’s exhibitions, performances, programs, donors, and acquisitions, and of course, the facts and figures that make it all add up.

Learning Resources

People making a structure with tape and long beams of wood — Teachers designed a communal space for learning with artist Faheem Majeed during a Teacher Institute
Photo: Gillian Fry © MCA Chicago

Explore learning resources created by and for the teachers, youth, families, and other members of our MCA Learning Community.