Lurie Garden is located in Millennium Park in Chicago, Illinois. The Garden was designed by landscape architects Kathryn Gustafson, Shannon Nichol, and Jennifer Guthrie; perennial planting designer Piet Oudolf; and bulb planting designer Jacqueline van der Kloet. It was constructed during the early 2000’s.
The design and construction of the Garden was underwritten by the Millennium Park Foundation (MPF), a 501(c)3 nonprofit founded in 1998 as an organization dedicated to the stewardship of Millennium Park. MPF has the principal horticultural responsibility for the Garden. The ongoing horticultural management of the Garden by MPF is supported, in part, by a $10 million endowment established by the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Foundation. The purpose of this endowment is to curate, preserve, and maintain the Garden according to the highest standards of quality so the Garden’s long-term beauty and international reputation as a destination garden are maintained.
The Garden’s naturalistic, new wave design—inspired by the prairies and woodlands historically characteristic of northeastern Illinois—is set within the contemporary design of Millennium Park and against the urban backdrop of downtown Chicago. The Garden is curated in a manner that honors its designers’ original vision for the space, while continuing to evolve the design and plantings through ongoing collaboration with the designers themselves.
