Arts & Entertainment

Searching for Tranquility? Here Are 5 Places in the Chicago Area That Summon Serenity, Peace and Quiet

Jackhammers, sirens, bucket drums — this city can be as noisy as it is windy and big-shouldered. So where does one find a little peace and quiet in the Chicago area? Below are five favorite spots for serenity — a subjective list with a few parameters.

The lakefront is the obvious choice. There is just one lakeside spot on the list, however, chosen because it’s often overlooked and is unlike any other park by the water.

Then there are houses of worship and cemeteries. Who hasn’t found a touch of tranquility at Baha’i Temple in Wilmette, Quinn Chapel at 24th and Wabash or Saint Peter’s in the Loop? Graveyards are eerie to some — for others, they’re a fine place for a meditation on mortality. There’s only one cemetery listed below, and it’s not Graceland — which is fabulous, but too conspicuous.

Another sanctuary is the Fern Room at Garfield Park Conservatory. A winter visit is like a short trip to the rainforest. But again: too well-known.

Here’s a lineup of places I’ve visited on assignment for WTTW News and filed in a mental folder titled “Revisit When You Need to Chill.” These are excellent places to reflect and recharge.

Just don’t everybody go at once.

Steelworkers Park – South Chicago

Steelworkers Park in South Chicago with WTTW cameraman Tim Boyd. (Marc Vitali / WTTW News)

There is a surreal serenity at Steelworkers Park on the lakefront in South Chicago. It’s both a peaceful prairie and a remnant of Chicago’s industrial past. At this former South Works site of U.S. Steel, massive ore walls hundreds of yards long mark the landscape like the ruins of an ancient castle. South Works operated from the 1880s until 1992, and then Mother Nature moved in. It’s the kind of place that makes you doubt that you’re still within city limits, yet it’s just a few miles from the South Shore Cultural Center. A few years ago, the Chicago Park District turned a portion of the concrete walls into a 30-foot climbing wall. It’s a strange hybrid spot with a muted ambiance — just birds, the wind in the grass and water lapping against the aging infrastructure.

Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art – Oak Brook

It’s tricky to recommend a museum for peace and quiet, even a small one. If you pull into the parking lot and see school buses, all bets are off. The Lizzadro is a jewel box of a museum filled with gemstones, and it casts a unique spell. The collection contains jade carvings, fossils and minerals, all carefully lit and thoughtfully presented. Along with geologic treasures in their natural form, there are mosaics, cameos and gems crafted by lapidary artists. There’s even a suite of kitschy dioramas. The Lizzadro has been in the western suburbs since 1962 for a reason. It’s a contemplative spot filled with natural and manmade beauty. Just keep an eye out for school buses.

Wrightwood 659 – Lincoln Park

Wrightwood 659 in Lincoln Park. (Jeff Goldberg)

A superb gallery for art, Wrightwood 659 has a refined and reflective atmosphere. It’s a recent addition to the cultural scene, opening in 2018. You may look at the exterior of 659 W. Wrightwood Ave. and wonder “What’s the big deal?” It looks like a 1920s apartment building because that’s what it once was. Then enter and behold the dramatic atrium. The inside spaces were designed by Tadao Ando (remember that name), a prominent Japanese architect. The galleries are meditative and austere — the spaces themselves are works of art. Don’t skip the fourth floor, which offers a bird’s eye view of the block. Parking is scarce in the neighborhood, and exhibitions are often for mature audiences, so there likely won’t be any school buses or kids. Wrightwood 659 has limited hours, so plan ahead.

The Ando Gallery – Art Institute of Chicago

The Ando Gallery? As in Tadao Ando, architect of the incredible interiors at Wrightwood 659? Same guy. The serene oasis that fills Gallery 109 was his first American project. Commissioned by the Art Institute, it opened in 1992. Tucked behind the Japanese art galleries in the Asian wing, a small forest of pillars reorients your focus to a collection of Japanese screens. It’s like a temple. Walking through, you may feel your heart rate decreasing. The Ando Gallery can also increase your heart rate — it has been called one of the best public places in Chicago to make out (so says the curator in the audio tour). It’s subtle and minimalist and holds a mesmerizing beauty. Chicago and the world needs more spaces created by Tadao Ando. Not everyone agrees — in 2022 Kanye West gutted his Ando-designed Malibu home before selling it at a loss.

Bohemian National Cemetery – Northwest Side

Bohemian National Cemetery on the Northwest Side. (Marc Vitali / WTTW News)

There are many awe-inspiring cemeteries around the city, but this one gets the nod because it is not only historical, it’s in the neighborhood. About 100 yards west of the WTTW studios lies Bohemian National Cemetery, the final resting place of 143 victims of the Eastland disaster of 1915. Nearby is the crypt of Anton Cermak, the Chicago mayor killed in Florida in 1933 by an assassin’s bullet meant for President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt. And in 2013 the service for longtime WTTW cameraman Cal Langenberg was held in the lovely domed chapel. The grounds are quiet and empty in winter — just lots of old pine trees with stories to tell. If you have a taste for the bizarre, visit the office with the purple rug and funky furniture. It looks like a set from a dream sequence in “Twin Peaks.”

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Marc Vitali is the JCS Fund of the DuPage Foundation Arts Correspondent.

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