“Big Blue” is going to Europe.
The most popular painting, along with eight other important works, will be part of a survey of American abstract expressionism that will start at in September and move to the , in February of 2017.
The loan will represent the first time any of Still’s paintings have been allowed to leave Denver since his widow donated the bulk of his life’s work to the city, which in return, built and opened a museum in his name in 2011.
Still’s work has rarely been seen in Europe and the two shows combined should draw more then a million viewers. The museum hopes the exposure allows the general public to understand what academics deem a given: That Still is one of the four great abstract expressionists of the 20th century. The other three, , and Willem de Kooning, will be in the exhibit, as well.
Denver officials see the loan as a chance to remind the international community that the city houses one of the most significant, single-artist museums in the world and the publicity will be payback, of a sort, for the effort it put out to take in and care for the work.
The exhibit will be important “not just for having Denver’s name out there, but Clyfford Still will finally be able to be seen in the context of these other artists,” said Museum Director .
The Still has been asked for paintings before but has hesitated on making loans. It is, after all this time, still getting a handle on the collection itself. Nearly half of the 825 paintings remain in their original wrapping as the museum methodically goes through its treasures, many delicate and in need of conservation.
Plus, there’s the matter of the deal made when the collection arrived. The agreement is unusually strict, prohibiting the museum from doing routine art world things like trading up for paintings, hosting a gift or coffee shop, or showing other artists besides Still within its walls.
There are provisions that hint at loans, but they are ambiguous and the museum’s board, and the city’s attorneys, decided, after much thought, that a loan would be possible.
The particular circumstances of the present request got everyone on board, according to Denver Arts & Venues Executive Director
“The stature of the collaboration with the Royal Academy and the chance it provided to lift up the artist and the museum,” made it a priority, he said.
The move is also a matter of good timing. The museum will stage “Clyfford Still: The Works on Paper” starting in October, showcasing more than 200 drawings. All of the paintings were going to come off the walls anyway.
“They could have stayed in storage where no one would see them,” said Sobel. “But, in this case, more people will see them than have since we opened five years ago.”
The loan encompasses important Still examples from 1944 to 1958. In addition to the painting popularly known as “Big Blue” — technically “PH-247” since the artist never named his pieces — there are paintings Still completed at the height of his career as he worked in both New York City and San Francisco.
Ray Mark Rinaldi: 303-954-1540, rrinaldi@denverpost.com or @rayrinaldi
