Modern Masters distills the canon of twentieth-century art at the Denver Art Museum

In a showing of neighborly solidarity, the Denver Art Museum turned to Dean Sobel of the Clyfford Still Museum to bring rare, twentieth-century riches from Buffalo's Albright-Knox Art Gallery to Denver. The resulting exhibit, Modern Masters: 20th Century Icons From the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, is the kind of show that will knock the wind out of you, a jewel-box of iconic images you rarely have the chance to see in person.

See also: Passport to Paris serves up French art with a side of history at the Denver Art Museum

"People here have not had direct contact with works by the greats of the period -- Miró, Picasso, Warhol," says Sobel. "This exhibition, in my view, is as good as it gets. It tells the story of modern art as well as any museum in the nation." The exhibit's centerpiece is a room of abstract expressionist works -- including a stunning Jackson Pollock -- many of which the long-standing gallery bought straight from the artists' studios before they'd gained art-world cachet.

Following is a sampler of what you'll see in Modern Masters, which, as Sobel notes, picks up where the last DAM blockbuster, Passport to Paris, left off.

Continue reading for more Modern Masters images. Continue reading for more Modern Masters images. Continue reading for more Modern Masters images.

Modern Masters opens Sunday, March 2 at the DAM and runs through the middle of June; Sobel's companion show, 1959: The Albright-Knox Art Gallery Exhibition Re-created, runs concurrently next door at the Clyfford Still Museum. Admission to Modern Masters, $5 to $20 (children ages five and under admitted free), is good for admission at both museums -- not necessarily on the same day. For reservations and information, visit the Denver Art Museum or Clyfford Still Museum online.


To keep up with the Froyd's eye view of arts and culture in Denver, "like" my fan page on Facebook.

• Arts and Culture
• Museums
• Photos