Museum Review: The Clyfford Still Museum, Denver CO

Hi everyone...and continued greetings from Colorado!

I was excited today to finally have gotten a chance to visit the new Clyfford Still Museum in Denver. It opened in November 2011 to great fanfare as it is the first museum anywhere in the world dedicated entirely to the art and legacy of the 20th century American Abstract Expressionist painter Clyfford Still.
My visit today was definitely worth the wait.

The museum is in possession of at least 95% of Still's impressive oeuvre as well as his entire archive of letters, notes, and other ephemera. Currently on view is what is being called the second Inaugural exhibit. It is a chronological representation of Still's work from the 1920s until his death in 1980. What was most interesting to me--who until today had a fleeting exposure to his work at best--was how Still's work evolved from more traditional/representational depictions of American life during the Great Depression and Industrial Age to full-on Abstract Expressionism. In fact, Still was painting in the abstract long before his better known contemporaries--including such luminaries as Rothko, Motherwell, and Pollock--had broken out of their own conventional style and taken the credit for pushing serious American art forward.

Still's abstract paintings are large format. As displayed in the museum, each canvas more-or-less is given its own wall. The color palates are bright--orange, blue, red, green--though often what most strikes the eye are his formless/dimensionless figures boldly painted in wide brushstrokes of black. Eschewing a central focal point, Still's paintings possess no discernible center. Instead, he invites the eye to follow the direction of his colors and brushstrokes across the entire painting, leaving interpretation to the individual. What is also interesting is that Still resisted the convention of giving any of his work a specific title. Each piece in the museum is identified by a number and its date. This is in strict keeping with stipulations imposed by the Still estate. Around the midpoint of his career--at a time when his work was being exhibited and championed by such influential art dealers as Peggy Guggenheim--Clyfford Still withdrew his work from public exhibition. In fact, the last twenty or so years of his life and career (1961-1980) he lived and worked in relative seclusion at his farm in Maryland.

Upon his death, Still entrusted his family with the responsibility of finding an American city that would commit to building a museum in which his works could be displayed independent of any other artist in the manner he desired. Denver was finally selected in 1999 and the museum opened to the public in November of 2011.

The museum itself is a thoroughly contemporary architectural gem of unadorned concrete-walled galleries and natural overhead lighting. As I mentioned earlier, each piece is given its own wall space which allows the viewer to devote his or her attention to a single piece without any neighboring distractions. This is a wonderful way in which to experience the work of an under-appreciated 20th century American master. My only criticism is that because the museum is dedicated solely to Clyfford Still's art (as per the Still estate's request), it is somewhat difficult to place his work within an historical context, or rather in the company of his better-known artistic peers. I would have liked more of a reference point, something to compare Still's genius to. Nonetheless, this is a minor criticism and does not deter one from enjoying, discovering, and/or rediscovering a brilliant American artist.

Given its relatively small (and beautifully manageable) size, I was able to stroll through the entire museum twice at a leisurely pace. I then enjoyed a coffee in the outdoor terrace of the Mad Beans cafe at the adjacent Denver Art Museum before meeting my brother for lunch at the Three Lions Pub on Colfax Avenue. More on the Three Lions in a later entry as I will definitely be returning there as well.

If you find yourself in Denver and have an hour or so to spend discovering the work of a truly great 20th century American artist, the Clyfford Still Museum at 1250 Bannock Street is time well spent.

Ciao.