Day 8 of 2022 Colorado Trip, Downtown Denver

Eighth and final day of our 2022 Colorado Trip. After taking my friend to the airport in the morning, I took a brief tour of downtown Denver before hopping onto an evening flight back home.

Denver Art Museum Exterior

Finally, it’s the last day of our Colorado trip. After a long day in Rocky Mountain National Park, including a hike around Bear Lake Region and a driving tour of Trail RidgeRoad, we only made it back to the hotel before 10pm the previous day. So this morning, we woke up late, and checked out of the hotel in Longmont at 10am. My friend had a flight leaving Denver at 1pm, so I offered to drop him off at the airport.

After that, I had an entire afternoon to spend in Denver before my flight in the evening. While I could check out the mountains to the west of the city, it’s a pretty hot day and I was a bit over-dressed. Given the not-so-good experience in Red Rocks Park in the sun 3 days ago, I decided instead to check out Denver Art Museum, indoor and with air conditioning.

It’s the Sunday before Labor Day. The streets near Denver’s Civil Center Park offered free parking. It’s just that there were some events going on, so I circled around for 20 minutes and ended up in a spot 5 blocks away, which wasn’t the most pleasant experience, nor was the walk to and from the parking spot through some less-than-ideal neighborhoods.

Once inside, I found Denver Art Museum to be much larger than I expected. I thought it would mostly feature local exhibits, instead it featured a rather comprehensive collection from around the world.

Since we summitted Longs Peak 2 days ago, I headed straight for midwestern paintings, and found the following ones featuring Longs Peak.

Click here to display paintings of Longs Peak.

Estes Park, Longs Peak

Albert Bierstadt.American, born in Germany, 1830-1902.Estes Park, Longs Peak.1877.Oil paint on canvas
In the early 1870s, Anglo-lrish nobleman and big game sportsman Lord Dunraven visited Colorado. He found the hunting so good that he eventually commandeered thousands of acres of land around Estes Park. In 1876, Dunraven commissioned Bierstadt to create this painting of his favorite hunting ground. It hung in Adare Manor, Dunraven’s family seat in County Limerick, lreland, until the 1950s, when it came to Denver.

Longs Peak and Flatirons
By Tracy Felix

A Mountain Symphony
By Birger Sandzen.

And here were some additional exhibits that captured my attention.

Click here to display photos of the art exhibit.

The Open Range
By William Herbert Dunton in 1914.

Papirius Praetextatus Entreated by His Mother to Disclose the Secrets of the Deliberations of the Roman Senate

Angelica Kauffman.Swiss, 1741-1807, active in England.Papirius Praetextatus Entreated by His Mother to Disclose the Secrets of the Deliberations of the Roman Senate.About 1775-80.Oil paint on canvas
The artist here illustrates a story from ancient Rome. She has chosen to show us the moment when Papirius’s mother tries to persuade him to reveal a confidential discussion held in the Senate. His ability to resist his mother’s pleas and thus keep the Senate’s vow of silence earned him the respect of the senators and the surname “praetextatus,” Latin for “underage”. The toga praetexta was the garment, bordered in purple, worn by young Roman boys until puberty.

Vesuvius Erupting at Night

William Marlow.British, 1740-1813.Vesuvius Erupting at Night.1768.Oil paint on canvas
Vesuvius, the infamous volcano in Italy that destroyed Pompeii in 79 CE, began erupting again in the 1760s. William Marlow, along with many others, was there for the event, and his observations and sketches prepared him for this large oil painting. Marlow was well known for his views of famous landmarks and cities, and may have used a camera obscura to help him achieve accuracy in his scenes.

Allegory of the Holy Sacrament
By Juan Correa

Seascape
By Alfred Thompson Bricher

Lunch
From the museum’s cafeteria, a mixture of things that looked healthy.

After the museum’s closing time, I checked out the festive events at the nearby Civic Center Park, it featured artist stands, live music and food carts. Probably due to the heat, I wasn’t too interested in that.

Click here to display photos of the slideshow

Denver Art Museum Interior

Denver Art Museum Exterior

Colorado State Capitol

Civic Center Park

Before heading to the airport, I took a brief tour of another touristy place in Downtown Denver, its 16 Street Mall. With construction and the amount of homeless people around, I didn’t find the shops and restaurants that appealing.
And after that, I drove to the airport, returned the rental car, and called it a day.

END

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