Chicago’s basically an outdoor art gallery. Turn a corner and boom — a whole wall telling a story.
These are 12 famous Chicago murals worth going out of your way for at least once. Bring your camera. And a little time to wander.
1. “Greetings from Chicago”
“Greetings from Chicago” is a giant postcard to the city – bold letters, bright colors, and a bunch of Chicago nods tucked inside each one.
It was painted by Victor “Ving” Fung with Lisa Beggs in May 2015, and it’s the mural that launched their Greetings Tour series (they travel city to city making these vintage “Greetings from…” walls).
It’s quick for a photo, but the real fun is hanging for a minute and spotting all the little details in the lettering.
📍 2226 N Milwaukee Ave (Logan Square)
2. Robin Williams Mural
The Robin Williams Mural is one of those walls that makes you stop without meaning to.
It was painted in 2018 by Owen Dippie (the portrait) with Jerkface adding that swirling Genie energy in the background — a smart, emotional nod to Aladdin and Robin’s whole “a million characters in one person” magic.
It’s huge, it’s moody, and it somehow feels both joyful and heavy at the same time.
📍 2047 N Milwaukee Ave (Logan Square)
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3. Vivian Maier Mural
The Vivian Maier Mural hits harder when you know who she was.
Maier spent decades working as a nanny while secretly shooting street photos around Chicago and New York — thousands and thousands of sharp, human, everyday moments.
Almost nobody knew what she was doing. Then in 2007, her work was found after boxes of her negatives were sold off at a storage auction, and people realized Chicago had been sitting on a once-in-a-generation photographer the whole time.
That’s what this wall is really about: giving her the spotlight she never got while she was alive.
📍 1651 W North Ave (Wicker Park/West Town)
4. Native American Lost In Chicago
“Native American Lost in Chicago… Dreamin’” is one of those murals you feel before you even process it. It’s massive – a quiet, almost sleepy figure stretched across the side of a building, like they’ve drifted off right in the middle of the Loop.
It was painted in 2016 by the French duo Ella & Pitr, who are known for these giant “sleeping” characters that look peaceful from the street… and even wilder when you catch them from a higher angle.
The whole point is that contrast: this calm, human moment set against a busy city that never shuts up.
📍 527 S Wells St (Printer’s Row / South Loop)
5. Muddy Waters
The Muddy Waters mural is a tribute to McKinley “Muddy Waters” Morganfield — the Mississippi-born musician who came to Chicago and basically helped invent the electric Chicago blues sound.
It was painted by Eduardo Kobra in 2016, turning Muddy into this loud, colorful icon that matches the way his music hit the city.
It’s Chicago saying: this guy changed everything.
📍 17 N State St (The Loop)
6. Will E Coyote
The Wile E. Coyote mural is Chicago’s reminder that trying (and failing) is kind of the whole point.
You’ve got Wile E. mid-scheme, full ACME confidence, caught in that split second before everything goes wrong — and it’s painted so crisp it feels almost 3D.
It was created by Chicago artist Eric Lee (E. LEE) in June 2023, and the whole vibe is relatable on purpose: big ideas, high effort, reality hits. Still… you try again.
📍 1290 N Clybourn Ave (Old Town)
7. Moose Bubblegum Bubble
The Moose Bubblegum Bubble mural is pure Chicago weird in the best way — a giant moose, dead serious, casually blowing a bright pink bubble like it’s the most normal thing in the world.
It was created by Jacob Watts after Columbia College Chicago’s Wabash Arts Corridor (WAC) ran a student + alumni competition in spring 2014, and his piece was picked as a winner.
The fun twist is it’s one of the only big photo-based murals around here, which is why it pops so hard in person — it feels almost too crisp for a wall.
📍 33 E Ida B. Wells Dr (formerly Congress Pkwy)
8. Cheshire Cat Mural
You’ll be cruising down Milwaukee and suddenly there’s that grin, floating way up high like it’s watching the neighborhood like it owns the place.
It’s by NYC street artist Jerkface, and he’s known for flipping pop-culture icons into big, clean, punchy street pieces.
This one’s officially titled “Every Adventure Requires A First Step,” which fits. It feels like a little portal to weird, playful Chicago.
📍 1166 N Milwaukee Ave (Wicker Park)
9. Mac Blackout mural
Mac Blackout’s best-known big wall moment is his black-and-white psychedelic mural on the side of Sleeping Village — it’s basically a visual mixtape.
Mark McKenzie (who paints under the name Mac Blackout) knocked it out in 2018, and the whole thing reads like a trippy tribute to music: cosmic shapes, comic-book energy, and that “everything’s connected” feeling you get at a great show when the room’s locked in together.
📍 3734 W Belmont Ave (Avondale)
