On The Road

What’s to do in Denver this week? Besides the Democratic National Convention?

Hey, even the most enthusiastic of Democrats need a break from politics on occasion. So why not check out some of The Mile High City’s cultural events?

The Denver Art Museum:

Clyfford Still Unveiled: Selections From The Estate features 13 paintings created by this leader among first-generation abstract expressionists. Clyfford Still is considered to be one of the most important painters of the twentieth century. This exhibition features a 1940 self-portrait, several never-before-seen works on paper, and five 1940s and 1950s masterworks that show the evolution of Still’s mature, purely abstract style.

The Age of Impressionism is running through September 7th. The exhibition features 40 works of art from 19th and 20th century European and American artists including Claude Monet, Eugene Boudin, Frederick Childe Hassam, and John Singer Sargent.

Varied Voices is a works on paper exhibition that includes works by 18 contemporary American artists and runs through December 31.

Vote is an exhibition in honor of the convention and is a collaborative project put on by the museum and the AIGA. Get Out the Vote, AIGA’s Design for Democracy initiative, invited designers from across the country to create posters to inspire Americans to participate in the political process. 50 of these digital posters will be displayed on the atrium’s screen through August 31.

Museum of Contemporary Art Denver:

THe MCA Denver has a number of exhibitions this week that look interesting. Artists included in individual shows include Jane Hammond, Adam Helms, Omar Fast, Suzanne Kuhn, Brad Kahlhamer, and Jack Balas.

Dialog:City:

What Dialog:City has to offer this week looks to be some really interesting work by some very contemporary artists. They have invited internationally renowned artists and designers to create participatory, interactive, and dialogical site-specific works in neighborhoods across the city of Denver. From Political Karaoke, digital projections of Veteran stories from a Humvee, and a technology hip-hop opera on the climate impact on Antarctica - this event will be a cutting-edge convergence of art and public life. Participating artists are Charlie Cannon, Minsuk Cho, Luke DuBois, Ann Hamilton, Sharon Hayes, Lyn Hershman, Daniel Peltz, DJ Spooky, spurse, and Krzysztof Wodiczko.

Unconventional Women:

An historic symposium uniting 3,000 women, advancing their political leadership and participation. This is happening on August 25th from 8am til 2pm at the Buell Theatre. Check web site for a list of speakers.

Cinemocracy Rocks

Democracy in film out at the Red Rocks amphitheatre.

Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Extreme Ice is the work of award-winning photographer James Balog. This photographic exhibition features some of the most beautiful and remote environments on Earth.

Also on exhibit at the museum are the science of mummies, gems and minerals, an exhibit of Native American everyday objects, tracing evolution, discovering the universe, and wildlife exhibits. There is also a Discovery Zone for the kids.

It looks like it might be an interesting week in Denver even if you aren’t going to the convention. If you know of an event that I missed, please leave it in the comments area!