Celebrate The Summer Solstice And The 25th Anniversary of Americas’ Courtyard At The Adler Planetarium

Header Image: Americas’ Courtyard outside of the Adler Planetarium.

Celebrate the summer solstice—aka the first official day of summer for the Northern Hemisphere—this Wednesday evening at the Adler Planetarium!

On June 21, 1998, a sculpture composed of 56 rectangular blocks of granite configured in concentric circles with four large pieces of marble in the center was installed near the Art Institute of Chicago. The work—titled Americas’ Courtyard—is part of the City of Chicago Public Art Collection, and was moved to the lawn area just south of the Adler Planetarium in December 2000. At its new location, the configuration of the stone elements resembles a spiral galaxy and symbolizes an ancient celestial observatory. Former Adler astronomer Phyllis Pitluga helped the artists arrange the stones to create four pathways representing the Sun’s passage during the seasonal solstices.

The Adler Planetarium is open every Wednesday night from 4:00 pm–10:00 pm for Adler at Night, and to celebrate this celestial event Brazilian artist Denise Milan will be on site to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Americas’ Courtyard. Beginning at 6:30 pm, guests are invited to join us at the site of the sculpture for an informal conversation and Q&A about the process and inspiration behind this stunning piece.

Weather permitting, the Adler will have small telescopes out on the terrace in front of the Americas’ Courtyard sculpture from 7:00 pm–9:00 pm. We will begin with solar observing, and then view the Moon and Venus when the Sun sets. The Adler’s Doane Observatory, housing the largest publicly accessible telescope in the Chicagoland area, will also be open beginning at 8:00 pm. All Wednesday evening telescope activities are free and open to the public. Museum Entry tickets to Adler at Night are free for Illinois residents, and must be reserved online, in advance. If you are not an Illinois resident, Museum Entry tickets to Adler at Night can be purchased here.