The National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago is hosting an exhibit that explores art from the time of the 1893 World’s Fair. Arte Diseño Xicágo II (Art Design Chicago II) runs from April 12 through August 11, 2024.

This exhibition examines the 1893 World’s Fair as a platform for expressions of cultural identity and reveals how many Chicago and Mexican artists had similar objectives. The exhibition features 19th-century works of art from both Chicago and Mexico by some of the leading artists participating in the World’s Fair, along with contemporary artworks by Mexican-born, Chicago-based artists whose art reflects their transnational experiences. This new exhibit follows Arte Diseño Xicágo from 2018, which featured works by José María Velasco, one of Mexico’s foremost artists in the late 19th century.

One of the earliest proponents of holding a world’s fair to mark the quadricentennial of Columbus’ arrival on the continent was a Mexican physician, Dr. Carlos W. Zaremba, who proposed that Mexico City might host the event. Although Mexico had planned to construct a Mexican pavilion on the Chicago fairgrounds, the economic crisis of the 1890s limited their presence to smaller—yet award-winning—displays in the exhibition halls of the Columbian Exposition.

The exhibit is part of Art Design Chicago, which is supported by the Terra Foundation for American Art. The National Museum of Mexican Art is located at 1852 W. 19th Street in Chicago and has free admission.