Denver Art Museum, or "DAM, That's Good Art"

A few weeks ago, Summer's mom emailed her to tell her about a trip she and Phill were planning to Denver to see a travelling exhibition on Impressionist art. Her devious plan to get us to tag along worked, as we took the bait and asked if they would mind us joining them. So Friday morning we hit the road.

After negotiating some rush hour traffic, we reached open road, but being in the fray made me a bit aggressive behind the wheel, and I was going about 90 when, just north of Santa Fe, I spotted a State Trooper going the other direction. She quickly crossed the median and pulled us over. It had been a good 8 years since I had been ticketed, so I suppose I was due. The funniest (or perhaps the only funny part) was when Isaac asked if I was going to jail...

Our first planned stop was an Evan feeding at a rest stop north of Las Vegas, NM. Here the kids ran around and burned off some energy. The rest area has no water, so the vegetation here is apt:
The rest of the trip was uneventful, and we arrived in Denver late in the afternoon. We went downtown for dinner with Phill and Pat, who were staying just blocks from the 16th Street Mall, a mile-long, pedestrian only promenade. The downtown area was bustling, indicative of the vibrant metropolis that Denver has become. It's also a very clean city with lots of parks and attractions, not to mention Major League baseball (albeit National League). Summer and I commented that it would be a great place to live, but it's certainly too big for our taste.

Saturday was museum day. After meeting up with the Catheralls for a brunch-like bite, we proceeded south to the Denver Art Museum. (As a side note, the museum has a lot of fun with the DAM initials, inviting visitors to buy a membership and become a "DAM good friend.") It was chilly Saturday, and while we were inside we even saw some light snow flurries.

Our walk took us past the Civic Park, which is itself across the street form the State Capital building. Here Isaac pauses for a photo:

The exhibit itself was great, showcasing how artists such as Renoir, Monet, and Cassatt were trained in the artistic traditions and began their careers copying the old masters and then went on to experiment with the themes and techniques of previous eras. After an hour or so in the exhibit, we decided, due to the aforementioned snow, to stay inside and eat lunch at the museum restaurant. To get there, were took the pedestrian bridge connecting the north and south buildings. Here the kids pose, seemingly floating above 13th street:

After lunch we split into two parties; Ryan wanted to see African and Oceanic art, so he and Isaac came with me. On our way to meet up with the rest of the group, we discovered a room where an overhead lighting system projected bubbles (about 2-foot wide circles) onto the floor. When you stepped on a "bubble" and got between the light source and the floor, it "popped," splitting into a dozen smaller circles that expanded outward and disappeared. The boys took to this and popped bubbles for about 15 minutes. Afterwards, they looked like this:

It's been a long time since I spent all day in a museum, and it was great fun. The DAM has great pieces of art and a number of interactive features that make it fun for the kids as well. But perhaps their favorite was this sculpture outside of a broom and dustpan:

Altogether, we had a wonderful time. Our initial plan was to hit the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, but we never got around to it, so I promised Ryan we would go back and do that and a Rockies game. Anyone who wishes to come along is invited...

And in closing, here are the kids with another outdoor sculpture: