Chazen Museum of Art

Chazen Museum of Art is a museum in Wisconsin, at a modelled elevation of 264 m. Blue Mounds stands 524 m to the west, 23 miles off. The nearest named place is Class of 1920 Memorial Plaza, a park less than a tenth of a mile away. Lower Wisconsin River Road Scenic Byway passes 17 miles off. 20 named summits stand within 25 miles.
The story
The Chazen Museum of Art is an art museum located on the campus of the University of Wisconsin–Madison in Madison, Wisconsin. Founded as the Elvehjem Art Center (later Elvehjem Museum of Art) in 1970, the museum moved into a brutalist building designed by Illinois architect Harry Weese to house the university's collection of 1,600 artworks. The museum was named after then-president of UW-Madison, biochemist Conrad Elvehjem. In 2005, the institution was renamed Chazen Museum of Art following an important gift by businessman Jerome A. Chazen and his wife Simona, both university alums. The gift provided part of the construction funds for an additional museum building. The structure was designed by the Boston-based architectural firm Machado-Silvetti and inaugurated in 2011. With 176,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area and a collection of over 25,000 objects as of 2026, the Chazen Museum of Art is the second-largest art museum in Wisconsin, after the Milwaukee Art Museum.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Dates from 2005.
Wikidata Q3666871, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What to expect
- Fee
- No
How to reach it
- 17.3 mi off the Lower Wisconsin River Road Scenic Byway
Named places within 25 miles
- Class of 1920 Memorial Plaza: 0.0 mi
- Library Mall: 0.1 mi
- Alumni Park: 0.2 mi
- Robert E. Gard Storyteller's Circle: 0.3 mi
- Elizabeth Link Peace Park: 0.3 mi
- Awakening: 0.0 mi
- Mother and Child: 0.0 mi
- Both / And — Tolerance / Innovation: 0.1 mi
- The Lantern: 0.2 mi
- Well Red: 0.2 mi
- State Historical Society: 0.1 mi
- 9XM-WHA: 0.1 mi
- A Stage For All: 0.2 mi
- The Greenbush 1891-1960: 0.5 mi
- Memorial Arch: 0.6 mi
- Welcome Garden: 0.2 mi
- Creativity Garden: 0.2 mi
- Inspiration Garden: 0.2 mi
- UW Madison Botany Garden: 0.3 mi
- Allen Centennial Garden: 0.8 mi
- Washburn Observatory: 0.5 mi
- Tiger: 1.1 mi
- African Penguins: 1.1 mi
- Lion: 1.1 mi
- Capybara: 1.1 mi
- Lakeshore Nature Preserve: 1.4 mi
- Edgewood Forest: 1.6 mi
- Turville Point Conservation Park: 2.1 mi
- Jenni & Kyle Preserve: 3.5 mi
- University of Wisconsin Arboretum - Grady Tract: 3.7 mi
- L.R. Ingersoll Physics Museum: 0.3 mi
- UW Geology Museum: 0.4 mi
- Madison Museum of Contemporary Art: 0.5 mi
- Wisconsin Veterans Museum: 0.6 mi
- Madison Children's Museum: 0.8 mi
- Brittingham Beach: 0.8 mi
- James Madison Beach: 1.0 mi
- James Madison Beach: 1.0 mi
- James Madison Beach: 1.0 mi
- Willow Beach: 1.1 mi
- Bascom Hill: 0.3 mi
- Observatory Hill: 0.5 mi
- Eagle Heights: 2.4 mi
- Blackhawk Hill: 2.6 mi
- Frederick's Hill: 5.6 mi
- Council Spring: 2.2 mi
- Ho Nee Um Spring: 2.2 mi
- Big Spring: 2.3 mi
- Merrill Spring: 3.5 mi
- Springs: 5.4 mi
- Maple Bluff: 2.9 mi
- Fox Bluff: 3.7 mi
- Table Bluff: 14.8 mi
- Pine Bluff: 22.5 mi
- Allen Bluff: 23.8 mi
- Picnic Table and Gazebo: 4.0 mi
- Tribal Council Picnic: 9.6 mi
- Williams Knoll: 11.3 mi
- MacKenzie Picnic Area: 22.2 mi
- Train Car: 9.8 mi
- Poynette Rest Area 12: 24.6 mi
- Portage Rest Area 11: 24.9 mi
- Cascade Aerator: 7.7 mi
- Fellows: 24.6 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 25 miles of Chazen Museum of Art. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Mounds | W 262° | 524 m | 23.1 mi |
| Sugarloaf Hill | NW 316° | 346 m | 21.1 mi |
| Liberty Pole Hill | S 182° | 338 m | 16.9 mi |
| Liberty Mound | ESE 109° | 326 m | 12.6 mi |
| Owls Head Hill | NNW 335° | 319 m | 24.3 mi |
| Frederick's Hill | NW 309° | 317 m | 5.6 mi |
| Mount Pleasant | SW 225° | 316 m | 17.5 mi |
| Mount Julia | SW 222° | 313 m | 16.4 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:02 | 18:32 | 19:10 |
| June solstice | 05:19 | 19:58 | 20:41 |
| September equinox | 06:46 | 18:19 | 18:57 |
| December solstice | 07:27 | 15:40 | 16:26 |
Local time (America/Chicago).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 19 | 23 | 34 | 47 | 58 | 68 | 72 | 70 | 62 | 50 | 37 | 25 |
| Precip in | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 5.7 | 4.7 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 1.9 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — UW Arboretum - Madison, 3 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidataOfficial siteOpenStreetMap element way/295708135
Take the scenic way to Chazen Museum of Art.
Byway plans around your taste, verified places, real weather and opening hours — then opens every leg in Google Maps with one tap.

