American Writers Museum

Museum in Chicago

American Writers Museum

The museum is located on the second floor of 180 N. Michigan

Established| 2010 (space opened in 2017)[1]
Location| Chicago, Illinois, United States
Coordinates| 41°53′08″N 87°37′29″W﻿ / ﻿41.885553°N 87.624831°W﻿ / 41.885553; -87.624831
Type| Culture
Founder| Malcolm E. O'Hagan[2]
President| Carey Cranston
Website| americanwritersmuseum.org

The American Writers Museum is a museum of American Literature and writing that opened in Chicago in May 2017.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9] The museum was designed by Amaze Design of Boston.[10]

The American museum was inspired by the Dublin Writers Museum.[5]

## Permanent Exhibits

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### Nation of Writers Gallery

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This gallery celebrates the breadth and depth of American writing through the following three exhibits.[11]

#### American Voices

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A 60-foot-long timeline featuring 100 authors that represent the evolution and flourishing of American writing. The exhibit shows the evolution of the American literary voice over time.[12] Taken together, this rich literary heritage reflects America in all of its complexity: its energy, hope, conflict, disillusionment, and creativity.[11]

#### Surprise Bookshelf

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This wall features 100 works representing dozens of writing categories.[11] Visitors can open boxes in the wall to reveal a sensory connection to that work, including smells, sounds, writing, and dioramas.[12]

#### Word Waterfall

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An immersive light experience in the Nation of Writers gallery. A wall of seemingly random words are revealed to be literary quotes on perspectives on being American through light projections.[11][13]

### Readers Hall

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The American Writers Museum primary event and programming space, this large room features information on the walls about libraries and the history of reading in the United States, as well as a space to read the provided books.[14] Visitors can also vote for their favorite books at two kiosks that update leaderboards visible above the voting stations.[14]

### The Mind of Writer

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A gallery designed to illustrate how writers think and what the writing process is like by showing how writers use language and giving visitors a chance to write themselves.[15] The gallery includes large touch tables that feature insights on 35 works of American writing, wall displays with writing advice, an interactive dialogue generator, and touch screen facts and games.[13] Visitors can also write a story on vintage typewriters, taking or leaving their work for others to continue.[13][15]

### Chicago Gallery

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A gallery that features the many writers lived in Chicago during their lives. Hanging banners give biographical information about each writer.[16][14] A touch screen map also allows visitors to explore literary locations throughout the city.[16]

* Writers Hall
* A Writer's Room
* Children's Gallery
* Changing Exhibits Gallery[17]

## American Writers Festival

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On May 15, 2022, the American Writers Museum hosted the American Writers Festival at the Chicago Cultural Center and the American Writers Museum.[18][19][20] All events at the Festival were free to attend.[21][19] Featured panelists at the Festival included Joy Harjo, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Jacqueline Woodson, Peter Sagal, Marc Lamont Hill, Elie Mystal, and Natalie Moore.[18][19]

## Further reading

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* Schuessler, Jennifer (May 8, 2017). "An Everyman Museum to Celebrate American Writers". New York Times.
* Johnson, Steve (December 17, 2018). "American Writers Museum sneak peek: far-reaching, dramatic". Chicago Tribune.
* Italie, Hillel (May 17, 2017). "New American Writers Museum lets Prince's lyrics rub elbows with Hemingway's work". Seattle Times. Associated Press.

## References

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1. ^ Kirch, Claire (October 27, 2015). "American Writers Museum Settles in Chicago". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
2. ^ American Writers Museum Announces Prime Michigan Avenue Space press release. October 27, 2015
3. ^ Johnson, Steve. "Writers museum in Chicago sets opening date". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
4. ^ Johnson, Steve (October 27, 2015). "New American Writers Museum is slated to open in 2017 on Michigan Avenue". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
5. ^ a b Parker, Loanne (March 28, 2014). "Which Museums Show Real Promise?". Washington Post. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
6. ^ Liebenson, Daonad (June 21, 2013). "Fundraising begins for the American Writers Museum". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
7. ^ Russell, Anna (June 13, 2013). "American Writers Museum: A Bookish Proposal". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
8. ^ Wallis, David (March 19, 2014). "Start-up Success Isn't Enough to Found a Museum". New York Times. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
9. ^ "Beverly's Cranston named AWM president". beverlyreview.net. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
10. ^ Zaleski, Andrew. "American Writers Museum Set to Open on Chicago's Michigan Avenue -". Architectural Digest. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
11. ^ a b c d "A Nation of Writers". American Writers Museum Exhibits. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
12. ^ a b "Chicago's American Writers Museum Celebrates Diverse Voices". Condé Nast Traveler. May 26, 2017. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
13. ^ a b c Schuessler, Jennifer (May 8, 2017). "An Everyman Museum to Celebrate American Writers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
14. ^ a b c travelsmartwoman (July 11, 2021). "American Writers Museum Celebrates Words–of All Kinds!". TravelSmart Woman. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
15. ^ a b "Saul Zaentz Charitable Foundation Mind of a Writer Gallery". American Writers Museum Exhibits. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
16. ^ a b "Wintrust Chicago Gallery". American Writers Museum Exhibits. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
17. ^ "American Writer's Museum Visitor Experience". October 2015. Archived from the original on June 23, 2016.
18. ^ a b Liederman, Mack (April 28, 2022). "Authors, Poets And Playwrights Headline Inaugural American Writers Festival". Block Club Chicago. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
19. ^ a b c Eanet, Lindsay. "Catch free talks from literary luminaries at the American Writers Festival this weekend". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
20. ^ "Chicago museums team up for American Writers Festival". ABC7 Chicago. May 12, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
21. ^ "There's a new lit fest in town: American Writers Festival will host authors from Joy Harjo to John Scalzi, all events free". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 28, 2022.

## External links

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* American Writers Museum
* Grand opening of the American Writers Museum, May 15, 2017
* American Writers Museum Records at the Newberry