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A bronze monument to Nicolas Copernicus, founder of modern astronomy, since 1973 has sat near the Adler Planetarium on Chicago's downtown museum campus. - Mary Bergin

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When I think of Chicago's icons, the lofty Sears Tower and festive lakefront Navy Pier come to mind first. They identify the city because of their setting and unique structural silhouettes.

Artwork will do the same thing in an even more distinctive way. Think about Picasso's lion-like (or, to its detractors, baboon-like) sculpture on Daley Plaza since 1967. Or "Cloud Gate," an ever-changing mirror of the city and its people at Millennium Park, the urban playground that opened in 2004.

More than 700 pieces of public art dot and define Chicago, and now the city has organized a set of neighborhood tours to explain the history and impact of this bounty.

Chicago's budget for artwork is 1.33 percent of its construction budget for public buildings. The city's public art program has commissioned artwork for public spaces and buildings since 1978. Other art installments exist because of private donations or funding by other public entities.

"There are many layers of collections," said Elizabeth Kelley, public art program director, and tour guide for the city's first art sightseeing excursion (a three-hour journey via bus and foot). What is to be learned?

Art can play tricks with the eye.

Bronze lions in front of the Art Institute of Chicago are not twins: One has tail down and mouth open; the other takes the opposite stance. The Bowman and The Spearman, in Grant Park, are convincingly poised to attack -- but neither sculpture contains a weapon.

Art can have functional value.

A sleek, cylindrical sleeve over an elevated train stop at the Illinois Institute of Technology muffles the noise as it dresses up the campus. A 13-foot working sundial sits outside of Adler Planetarium.

Art can be a reaction to history.

Since 1994, "Monument to the Great Northern Migration," a bronze figure of a man with a suitcase has bolstered an entrance to Bronzeville, an African-American neighborhood. Within a 96-foot-tall monument at Douglas Park is the tomb of U.S. Sen. Stephen Douglas, who was Abe Lincoln's toughest political rival.

Art can entice emotional reactions.

Casual and joyful interactions are commonplace at Millennium Park. People walk up to "Cloud Gate" (also called "The Bean" because of its kidney shape) to see their own reflection against the Chicago skyline. Curves on "Cloud Gate" resemble a funhouse mirror, adding another element of interest. In "The Crown Fountain," the faces of 1,000 people appear, in rotation, on two 50-foot glass towers. Water sometimes spews from the mouth of people pictured, and the spray cools passersby in warm weather.

More contemplative moods emerge a few blocks south in Grant Park, while walking among 106 headless figures, each nine feet tall. Called "Agora," the 2006 work of a Polish artist is one of Chicago's most emotional and controversial, said Elizabeth Kelley.

The average person cannot easily see two of Chicago's newest additions of public art, because they're located in the new Federal Building for homeland security and immigration services, which opened last year at 101 W. Congress Parkway. Screening at the entrance is tight: Show an ID, take off your shoes, empty your pockets and explain why you're there.

So a guided city art tour is the least conspicuous way to view a whimsical, abstract mural by Arturo Herrera of Venezuela and "La Tormenta/The Storm" by Inigo Manglano-Ovalle of Spain. The latter are near-twin clouds of shiny fiberglass, each 1,200 pounds and looming three stories above a waiting room.

"Going to a federal building is rarely a pleasant experience," notes Michael Finn, fine arts specialist for the U.S. General Services Administration. "It's usually a point of tension or anxiety," and the artwork helps soften the experience.

For more on the Chicago Neighborhood Tours, visit www.chicagoneighborhoodtours.com or call 312-742-1190. Tours leave from the Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St., and last three to five hours or more. Sites are viewed by bus and while walking.

Cost is $20 to $50 (often less for children, students with an ID and people ages 65 or older).

Other tours of public art will be Aug. 13 (west neighborhoods); July 2 and Aug. 27 (near north); July 16 ("American Art, American City" theme); and July 30 (south).

Longer tours command the higher price and include lunch. Our favorite is the Taste of the Neighborhoods tours (June 28, July 26, Aug. 16, Sept. 20, Oct. 18 and Nov. 22). Ethnic foods are sampled at family-owned restaurants and other food businesses.

Architecture often is an element in the neighborhood tours, but the finest way to study the Windy City's most distinct structures is through nonprofit Chicago Architecture Foundation tours.

Sites are toured by bus, by walking or -- our preference in good weather -- boat. Docents note more than 50 spots of significance during the 90-minute Architecture River Cruise. A ticket is $30 or less; reservations are recommended. For more, visit www.architecture.org or call 312-922-3432.

Disclosure: The Chicago Office of Tourism arranged for our complimentary participation in Chicago Neighborhood Tours.