Facade of the Art Institute

The Art Institute towers over the automobiles lining East Adams Street in Otto Schneider’s etching of a familiar local vista. The artist’s vision allows us to imagine the hustle and bustle of early 20th-century Chicago as cars speed down Michigan Avenue and pedestrians make their way down the sidewalk. Schneider attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for a brief period before embarking upon a career as an illustrator.