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Our Galleries

What's inside The Block?  It depends on how you look!

The Block Museum has 5,600 square feet of display space, divided into three galleries, which provide opportunities for museum visitors to experience the varied exhibitions that spring from the Block’s commitment to presenting art across time, place, and medium. The museum’s atrium and reception areas are spaces for students to socialize and study, as well as to come together with the wider public for a range of programs, performances, and other events.

Block Cinema

Experience thought-provoking classic and contemporary films.

The Block Museum's in house cinema screens classic and contemporary films and is dedicated to providing the Northwestern campus, the North Shore and Chicago with a quality venue for cinema. The Block's cinema is sponsored in part by a generous gift from James B. Pick and Rosalyn M. Laudati.

Screenings are free. Films are screened in the Block Museum’s Pick-Laudati Auditorium. Doors open thirty minutes prior to showtime. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. 

The Block Spot

A place to relax, study, see art and meet friends.

A light-filled lounge in the museum’s first floor lobby, Block Spot is equipped with Wi-Fi and offers a comfy sofa and chairs, and study spaces. The Block Spot is  a great place for students to hang out on campus. “In creating this gathering space we are signaling to Northwestern students that the Block is their museum,” said Lisa Graziose Corrin, the museum’s Ellen Philips Katz Director. Block Spot also features an interior counter running along the eastern and southern wall of windows, creating a perfect place for conversation, contemplation, and soaking up the sun. 

Block Spot was created with James Geier, president and co-founder of Chicago’s award-winning 555 International, and with input from undergraduates in industrial designer and adjunct lecturer John Hartman’s industrial design projects class at the Segal Design Institute, based at the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. 

Eloise W. Martin Study Center

Explore The Block Museum's teaching collection.

To select works for your visit to the Eloise W. Martin Study Center, you may search the online database or contact one of the curators. Appointments can be scheduled Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM. There will be no viewings when the Museum is closed for exhibition installation.

• Individuals should request a viewing at least one week in advance. Review the individual Study Center Guidelines to help prepare for your visit.
• Teachers and professors are encouraged to schedule class visits prior to the beginning of the quarter or at least one month in advance. Review the class Study Center Guidelines to help ensure your visit is both enjoyable and safe for the collection.