Clyfford Still Museum

Clyfford Still Museum is a single-artist museum and research center at 1250 Bannock St in Denver’s Golden Triangle Creative District, just south of Civic Center Park. Opened in November 2011 and designed by Allied Works Architecture under lead architect Brad Cloepfil, the cantilevered, hand-textured concrete building houses approximately 93 percent of the total creative output of pioneering American Abstract Expressionist Clyfford Still (1904–1980). Under the terms of Still’s 1978 will, his estate was to be awarded intact to an American city willing to build a dedicated facility solely for the care, study, and exhibition of his work. After Still’s widow, Patricia Still, selected Denver in 2004, more than 3,125 works—including 830 paintings on canvas and 2,300 works on paper made between 1920 and 1980, most rolled and unseen in Maryland storage for over three decades—found their permanent public home here.

What to Expect at Clyfford Still Museum

Arrival begins through a dense forensic canopy of honey locust trees and an enclosed entry forecourt that transitions visitors away from the surrounding streetscape of Bannock Street. Inside, the ground floor holds the reception lobby, a curated museum shop, open-view painting racks and conservation laboratories, interactive archive stations, and The Making Space hands-on art studio. Ascending the sculptural concrete staircase—or taking the central passenger elevator—brings visitors to the second floor, where nine sky-lit galleries unfold in an intimate sequence of varying ceiling heights and proportions. Overhead, a cast-in-place perforated concrete ceiling scatters natural Colorado daylight evenly across the walls, allowing Still’s jagged vertical flames of impasto pigment, raw unprimed duck canvas margins, and towering color fields to be viewed under shifting natural light without harsh glare.

Because only a fraction of the 3,125 works can be hung at once, the curatorial team rotates installations two to three times a year, often organizing the nine rooms chronologically from Still’s early figurative depression-era canvases in Washington State and wartime industrial scenes in California through his breakthrough jagged abstractions of the late 1940s in New York and monumental late paintings made in Westminster, Maryland. Visitors can watch conservators and collections staff through ground-floor glass windows, examine personal sketchbooks, letters exchanged with Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock, and audio recordings via the digital archives, or step onto two outdoor second-floor terraces overlooking the sculptural brick fortress of the adjacent Denver Art Museum’s Martin Building.

• Nine Sky-Lit Second-Floor Galleries: Purpose-built rooms beneath a perforated, cast-in-place concrete ceiling that filters natural daylight across Still’s monumental canvases and works on paper.
• Allied Works Architecture Concrete Building: A 28,500-square-foot cantilevered structure featuring hand-hammered board-formed concrete walls with vertical quartz-and-granite ribs that catch the high-altitude sun.
• Clyfford Still Archives & Research Displays: First-floor interactive tables, personal photographs, paint tubes, palette knives, and correspondence documenting Still’s artistic evolution from 1920 to 1980.
• Visible Storage & Conservation Studios: Ground-level interior viewing windows allowing visitors to see custom rolling storage racks and live conservation work on massive unframed canvases.
• The Making Space Open Studio & Outdoor Terraces: A hands-on creative studio equipped with tactile art materials for all ages, paired with two open-air upper-level terraces framed by the museum’s canopy of trees.

Clyfford Still Museum at a Glance

Visiting Tips, Getting There & Nearby Pairings

To see the galleries in their quietest state and watch the overhead light shift across the textured impasto surfaces, arrive between 10:00 AM and 11:30 AM on a weekday, or late afternoon after 3:00 PM once school groups depart. Booking timed or general admission online via the official tickets page saves $2 off adult walk-up admission, and the museum hosts periodic SCFD Free Days throughout the year when advance registration is recommended. Large backpacks, bags exceeding 11 by 15 inches, and umbrellas must be stored in the complimentary self-service lockers on the first floor before heading upstairs. Non-flash still photography for personal use is welcomed in the galleries, though tripods and selfie sticks are not permitted.

Located at the corner of West 13th Avenue and Bannock Street, the museum is a 5-minute walk south from the RTD Civic Center Station hub and 10 minutes east of the Theater District/Convention Center light rail stop (D, H, and L lines). Drivers can park at the Cultural Center Complex Garage at 65 W. 12th Avenue (entrance on 12th between Broadway and Bannock) or use metered street spots along Bannock and Cherokee Streets. The entire building is wheelchair and stroller accessible, offering a step-free main entrance through the landscaped forecourt, an elevator linking both levels, wide gallery thresholds, complimentary manual wheelchairs and lightweight folding gallery stools, and gender-neutral accessible restrooms. Because the museum fits comfortably into a 90-minute visit, it pairs naturally with the neighboring Denver Art Museum immediately to the east, the Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art half a block north on Bannock Street, History Colorado Center two blocks east on Broadway, or espresso and lunch spots along Cherokee Street and Broadway.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the operating hours at the Clyfford Still Museum?

The Clyfford Still Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM and is closed on Mondays as well as major holidays including Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. Morning visits right at 10:00 AM on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays offer the calmest environment in the nine upstairs galleries.

How much do tickets cost, and are reservations required?

General admission for adults is $15 at the front desk or $13 when purchased in advance online, $13 for seniors aged 65 and older, and $10 for college students, teachers, and military personnel with ID. Youth aged 17 and under always enter for free, and SNAP/EBT cardholders qualify for $1 Explorer Pass admission. Walk-up tickets are readily available on regular days, though advance online booking saves money and guarantees entry on SCFD Free Days.

How much time should I budget for the Clyfford Still Museum?

Most visitors spend between 1 and 2 hours exploring the museum. That window allows about 45 to 60 minutes to move unhurriedly through the nine second-floor galleries and outdoor terraces, plus 30 minutes on the ground floor to browse the archival displays, watch the visible storage and conservation labs, and visit The Making Space studio.

Is the Clyfford Still Museum accessible and suitable for families?

Yes, the museum is fully step-free with elevator access to the second floor, free loaner wheelchairs and gallery stools, sensory-friendly resources, and accessible restrooms. Families with children benefit from free admission for everyone 17 and under, interactive hands-on activities in The Making Space, and dedicated family programs such as Art Crawl for infants and toddlers.

When planning your Thornton travel guide or comparing verified attractions and museums in Thornton, pair this stop with standout local spots including WOW! Children's Museum, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Denver – Thornton, Pecos Park, and Denver Art Museum (0.1 km away).