Cuneo Mansion and Gardens is a historic home, art collection and gardens in Vernon Hills, Illinois

Vernon Hills, Illinois

Vernon Hills is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,120 at the 2000 census, and estimated to be 23,957 as of 2005...

 built in 1914 and designed by architect Benjamin Marshall of Marshall & Fox. The mansion's first owner was Samuel Insull

Samuel Insull

Samuel Insull was an Anglo-American innovator and investor based in Chicago who greatly contributed to creating an integrated electrical infrastructure in the United States. Insull was notable for purchasing utilities and railroads using holding companies, as well as the abuse of them...

, founder of the Commonwealth Edison

Commonwealth Edison

Commonwealth Edison is the largest electric utility in Illinois, serving the Chicago and Northern Illinois area...

 company. John Cuneo, Sr. purchased the mansion in 1937 after the collapse of the Insull utility empire. Cuneo is best known as the founder of the Cuneo Press and Hawthorn Mellody Dairy. Cuneo had the interior of the Mansion painted with murals from Chicago Ecclesiological Muralist John Mallin. In 2009, the house was donated to Loyola University Chicago

Loyola University Chicago

Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...

.

Information

The mansion, which remained the family home until the death of Cuneo's widow in 1990, is now an art gallery and historic house museum. It opened its doors to the public for the first time in 1991. The mansion's paintings, tapestries, and other furnishings are the result of the Cuneo family's lifelong collecting. In addition to architecture and art, Cuneo is also known for its grounds, designed by the renowned Jens Jensen (landscape architect)

Jens Jensen (landscape architect)

Jens Jensen was a Danish-American landscape architect.-Early life:Jens Jensen was born near Dybbøl in Slesvig, Denmark, in 1860, to a wealthy farming family. For the first nineteen years of his life he lived on his family's farm, which cultivated his love for the natural environment...

.

During the holiday season, the museum and its grounds are decorated with holiday lights and people are invited to drive through a "Winter Wonderland Light Show".

Interpretive tours of the mansion and its collections are conducted by museum guides and staff. Self-guided tours are now offered Tuesday through Sunday 10:00 - 4:00pm until May 15th at which time guided tours will resume. The Mediterranean style mansion features an arcaded central hall, a lavish formal dining room and a private chapel. The collections include antique furnishings, Renaissance

Renaissance

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...

 paintings, tapestries, silver and porcelain. Souvenirs of your visit and unique gifts are available in the Museum Store.

Cuneo Museum in film

The Cuneo museum has been the backdrop of several noteworthy films set in Chicago. Specifically, many of the outdoor wedding scenes and reception shots for the 1997 romantic comedy My Best Friend's Wedding

My Best Friend's Wedding

My Best Friend's Wedding is a 1997 romantic comedy film directed by P. J. Hogan. It stars Julia Roberts, Cameron Diaz, Dermot Mulroney, Rupert Everett, and Philip Bosco.The film received mostly positive reviews from critics...

, starring Julia Roberts

Julia Roberts

Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...

 and Cameron Diaz

Cameron Diaz

Cameron Michelle Diaz is an American actress and former model. She became famous during the 1990s with roles in the movies The Mask, My Best Friend's Wedding, and There's Something About Mary. Other high-profile credits include the two Charlie's Angels films, voicing the character Princess Fiona...

, were filmed at Cuneo Museum. The museum was also the setting for Witless Protection

Witless Protection

Witless Protection is a 2008 comedy film from Lionsgate, starring Daniel Lawrence Whitney, better known as Larry the Cable Guy and Jenny McCarthy written and directed by Chicago native Charles Robert Carner. Whitney plays "Larry", a small-town deputy in Mississippi...

, starring Larry the Cable Guy

Larry the Cable Guy

Daniel Lawrence Whitney , better known by his stage name and character Larry the Cable Guy, is an American comedian, actor, and former radio personality....

, which appeared in 2008.