Free access to Art Institute of Chicago Images. If you’ve been looking for a new screen saver or background of just like looking at art the AIC is offering free, unrestricted use of 52,438 images of works in the collection believed to be in the public domain or to which the museum otherwise waives any copyright it might have. Such images are made available under Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation and the Terms and Conditions of this website. They’ve also enhanced the image viewing capabilities on object pages, which means that you can see much greater detail on objects than before.
Per the AIC website
You are welcome to use any images with the label “CC0 Public Domain Designation” for any purpose, including commercial and noncommercial uses, free of charge and without additional permission from the museum. Although the museum is not aware of and does not believe that such images are subject to any copyright restrictions, it is the sole responsibility of the image user to identify and obtain any necessary third-party permissions, if any. The Art Institute of Chicago makes no representations or warranties of any kind concerning the images.
How to find Public Domain images
Go to “The Collection” tab on the website. Click on “Show filters” on the left and filter for “Public Domain”. Click on the download button on the bottom right in the image. Drag and drop.
Printing money
We don’t have Public Domain access to new art such as Pop Art and any artist whose heirs, estates, trusts, foundations etc. are still printing money from the artists works including Picasso, Warhol, Lichtenstein, and poor Salvador Dali who was recently exhumed for a paternity test.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Two Sisters (On the Terrace), 1881. The Art Institute of Chicago.
How to caption images you may post
The museum requests that you include the following caption with reproductions of the images: Artist. Title, Date. The Art Institute of Chicago. This information, which is available on the object page for each work, is also made available under Creative Commons Zero (CC0).
Check the Chicago on the Cheap website as well as our Instagram regularly. I’ll be featuring different art I find in my Free Museum Days and Free and Cheap things to do posts from time-to-time as well as on Instagram.
