This summer’s best traveling exhibits

No matter if you’re a fan of contemporary art, comic books or LEGOS, this summer is chock-full of traveling art exhibits that are a can’t-miss. These exhibits include costumes from award-winning plays and movies, presidential portraits, one-billion-year-old rocks, Disney costumes and more.

Plan a family day, girl’s night, date night or even a weekend road trip to check out these exhibits!

• Through Aug. 15
• Art Institute Chicago
• 111 South Michigan Ave., Chicago

This summer, the Obama portraits will be visiting Chicago, the city where the former first couple started their lives and careers together. Barack’s portrait is called “Blooming Possibility,” by Kehinde Wiley. Michelle’s is called “An Accessible Icon,” by Amy Sherald.

• Through Nov. 28
• The Franklin Institute
• 222 North 20th St., Philadelphia

Looking for something fun to do with the kids? The Franklin Institute is hosting this interactive Crayola exhibit until the end of November after extending its stay by popular demand. You’ll walk through the exhibit, pitch a product and let your creativity flow through a series of interactive stations.

• Through Aug. 10
• Pensacola Museum of Art
• 407 South Jefferson St., Pensacola, Florida

LEGO fans both old and young alike will love Art of the Brick, an exhibit of LEGO works by Nathan Sawaya. One of the most popular statues is of a man made of yellow LEGOS ripping his chest open.

• Through August 2021 (more dates may be added)
• Museum of Pop Culture
• 325 5th Avenue N, Seattle

Hop over the MOPOP to see some of Disney’s most famous costumes. They include Cinderella’s dress and glass slipper, Maleficent’s robes and more.

• Through Sept. 5
• Grandscape in the Colony
• 5732 Grandscape Blvd., The Colony, Texas

Step into Jurassic World through this popular traveling exhibit. You’ll find life-sized dinosaurs, scientific experiments and dinosaur bones to explore with the whole family.

• Through Sept. 6
• Cleve Carney Museum of Art
• 425 Fawell Blvd. Glen Ellyn, Illinois

This exhibit not only features 26 original works by Frida Kahlo, but it also has an interactive multimedia timeline with objects from her life, including over 100 photos from Frida’s life. You can end your trip with a visit to the museum’s Frida-inspired garden.

• Through Sept. 6
• Museum of Science+Industry
• 5700 S Lake Shore Drive, Chicago

This is the largest exhibit of Marvel artifacts yet, with over 300 items ranging from original comic book pages, sculptures, interactive displays, as well as costumes and props from the Marvel movies. You’ll see a life-sized Groot, the first Marvel comic book ever made, set pieces from Tony Stark’s lab and more.

• Through Sept. 16
• The Field Museum
• 1400 S Lake Shore Drive, Chicago

This Chicago exhibit is perfect for kids, as it’s full of activities like a hologram of Goodall and augmented reality chimpanzee vocalization games. Learn more about Goodall’s work and the impact she continues to have on animal science today.

• Through Nov. 6
• Lighthouse ArtSpace at Germania Club
• 108 W. Germania Pl. , Chicago

Whether you’re looking to plan your next date, family outing or girl’s night, the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit is a perfect choice for any Van Gogh fan. You’ll learn more about Gogh’s work and life while his art is displayed on the walls and curated with music created specifically for the exhibit. They even have date packages, wine and a bakery with Gogh-themed pastries.

• Through May 2022
• Newfields: Indianapolis Museum of Art Galleries
• 4000 Michigan Rd., Indianapolis

Couldn’t get tickets for the Van Gogh Interactive Exhibit? Newfields has an alternative for you! The Lume is the museum’s largest exhibit today, consisting of roughly 300,000 square-feet of projected Van Gogh paintings.

• Through Oct. 4
• Asheville Art Museum
• 2 South Pack Square, Asheville, North Carolina

Walter looss Jr. spent over 60 years photographing athletes, and some of these photos are now on display at the Asheville Art Museum. Photographs include portraits, training or in-game shots, as well as shots from the 1984 Summer Olympics in L.A.

• Through Oct. 10
• The Paine Art Center and Gardens
• 1410 Algoma Blvd., Oshkosh, Wisconsin

Are you a fan of fashion? This exhibit of shoes throughout the years may be for you! This curated collection of 100 fab footwear comes from iconic designer Stuart Weitzman. The collection includes over three decades’ worth of shoes.

• Through Oct. 31
• Norman Rockwell Museum
• 9 Glendale Rd. / Rte 183, Stockbridge, Massachusetts

Step into a world of fantasy and magic with this exhibit of curated illustrations featuring myths, legends, fables and more. From sorcery and soldiers wielding swords, you’ll see fantastical depictions of dragons, demons and more.

• Through Sept. 26
• The Frick Pittsburgh
• 7227 Reynolds St., Pittsburgh

This exhibit combines the arts of fashion and sport with a historical look at women’s sporting fashion from the 1800s to 1960s. You’ll see design sketches, tennis outfits and horseback riding attire to help you gain a better understanding of how women’s sport fashion morphed throughout the decades.

• Through Aug. 30
• Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
• 1071 Fifth Ave., New York City

Before famous abstract painter Jackson Pollock started creating his famous drip-and-pour paintings, he was a muralist. This 1943 mural is Pollock’s largest art piece ever and is considered a pivotal artistic transition for Pollock.

• Through Nov. 15
• Indiana University – Bloomington
• 107 S Indiana Ave., Bloomington, Indiana

Glenn Close, famous for her role in “Fatal Attraction,” among other movies and plays, donated over 800 pieces to Indiana University in 2017. Now, those costumes are on display. You’ll see pieces from “101 Dalmatians,” “The Stepford Wives,” “Dangerous Liaisons” and more.

• Through Aug. 1
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• 1000 Fifth Ave., New York City

Alice Neel, a 20th-century artist and activist, is well-known for her artwork of people experiencing racism, sexism, classism and other injustices. This exhibit portrays her depictions of New Yorkers in the 1930s.

• Through Aug. 15
• Dayton Art Institute 
• 456 Belmonte Park North, Dayton, Ohio

Experience the highs and lows of the 1920s through silver prints, paintings and other artistic works that were created in the Roaring ‘20s.

• Through Sept. 5
• Joslyn Art Museum
• 2200 Dodge St., Omaha, Nebraska

This exhibit consists of industrial and modern artwork made between 1918 and 1939. These photographs, statues, paintings and more reflect the optimism of Americans looking to the future and embracing new technologies, as well as pessimism about capitalism during the historic stock market crash that followed the Roaring ‘20s.

• Through Sept. 5
• Detroit Institute of Arts
• 5200 Woodward Ave., Detroit

The son of Jamacian immigrants and raised in Harlem, Blackburn is best known for his contributions to printmaking during the Harlem Renaissance. This exhibit consists of his famous collaborations with other printmakers and other works during his over six-decade career.

• Through Sept. 6
• Fenimore Art Museum
• 5798 NY-80, Cooperstown, New York

Keith Haring was a pop art and graffiti artist in New York City during the 1980s. This collection features some of his most popular lithographs, silkscreens, drawings and posters that illustrate his activism and legacy on pop art.

• Through Sept. 19
• The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston 
• 1001 Bissonnet St., Houston

This exhibit features a collection of artwork from Georges Bemberg, a writer and pianist from Argentina who lived in Paris. His collection usually stays at the Renaissance Hôtel d’Assézat in Toulouse, France. As such, this is a rare exhibition of his collection outside of the hotel.

• Through Sept. 27
• San Diego Museum of Art
• 1450 El Prado, Balboa Park, San Diego

Can’t get enough of Bemberg’s private collection? More of these prized pieces are on loan at the San Diego Museum of Art. These pieces focus on portraits of royals (such as this portrait of Charles IX, King of France), local landscapes, mythology and the private lives of royals and everyday folk.

• Through Sept. 30
• American Museum of Natural History
• 200 Central Park West, New York City

Are you looking for more natural gems? How about actual ones? This special exhibit is home to over 5,000 gems and minerals used for jewelry, tools, tech and more. You’ll see an over one billion year-old slab and a nearly 135 million year-old amethyst geode, pictured here.

• Through Jan. 17, 2022
• Carnegie Museum of Art
• 4400 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh

If you’re a fan of modern architecture, this exhibit is a must-see. Consisting of works from 10 architects from around the world, you’ll get a glimpse of cutting-edge architectural works through a temporary landscape that runs throughout the museum.