A Parisienne in Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
At the time of Madame Grandin’s visit, the Art Institute was located in The Athenaeum on the west side of Michigan Avenue at 18-26 Van Buren Street. The new Art Institute Building, located on its current lakefront site on Michigan Avenue, opened during the summer of 1893 in time to host many meetings of the World’s Columbian Exposition Congresses.
“The Art Institute, which has a large number of both male and female students, offers courses in drawing, painting, sculpture, architecture, and even industrial arts. It is in fact, the equivalent of our École des Beaux Arts, but what a difference! From my first visit I was very surprised by what I saw there. I had gone to the Institute without much enthusiasm, somewhat obliged by circumstance. As a foreigner, I was curious but feared that it would be similar to our Parisian art studios where women feel uncomfortable and out of place. Not at all! On the contrary, this was not as all the situation. Instead of creating an uncomfortable atmosphere, the presence of young women was very appropriate in terms of their behavior and appearance. With the fervor of neophytes, the students worked diligently, thinking only of art!” (80)
