The has become the latest Denver arts institution to drop admission charges for its youngest visitors.
Effective immediately, patrons age 17 and under will get into the museum for free. Both the and the recently adopted similar policies.
“This means no kid has to pay to see world-class art in the area,” said museum director Dean Sobel. “This entire generation will be able to come and go as it pleases.”
Sobel said the change made sense for , which opened its doors three years ago at the corner of 13th and Bannock streets. The museum is a non-profit, though its holdings, thousands of paintings and drawings by the 20th century abstract expressionist Clyfford Still, belong to the city.
Young visitors make up only about 10 percent of the museum’s attendance and because they already get in at a reduced rate, the financial impact is minimal, Sobel said.
The admission change is the latest in a series of efforts the Still is taking to make the museum, which charges adults $10, more affordable. It is free on Friday evenings from 5 p.m.- 8 p.m. and recently stopped charging for all of its special programs, including gallery talks, film screenings and adult education courses.
The Still also offers free field-trip admissions for Denver schools, a effort that has brought more than 3,000 kids through the doors since it kicked off in 2014.
“The logical, next step was to drop the admission barrier entirely,” said Sobel.
The Still will continue as a partner in the program, which allows Denver public school students, plus one accompanying adult, free admission into major cultural institutions on weekends and school holidays.
Ray Mark Rinaldi: 303-954-1540, rrinaldi@denverpost.com or twitter.com/rayrinaldi
