By CGN Staff

As the official opening of the Obama Presidential Center draws closer, the Obama Foundation announced the first slate of public programming for the Center, focused on a free three-day Grand Opening Weekend celebration across the Jackson Park campus.

The inaugural weekend, June 19–21, will feature live music and dance performances, family art-making activities, food vendors, talks, sports programming, guided tours, and presentations connected to the Center’s commissioned artists and public art installations. Additional summer programming includes the “You Are America” series tied to the nation’s 250th anniversary, garden gatherings, wellness programs, youth initiatives with After School Matters, and ongoing talks and performances throughout the season.

As CGN explored this spring in “Art at The Obama Center: Raising the Future of Art and Possibility,” the Center’s ambitious art program positions the campus as a cultural destination as much as a presidential institution, with commissions by artists including Julie Mehretu, Carrie Mae Weems, Mark Bradford, Maya Lin, Richard Hunt, and many others.

Read the feature here.

The Obama Presidential Center opens to the public June 19, 2026. Additional programming and registration information will be released at obama.org.