In this Issue
Meet Longtime Supporter Mark Freeman
Denver resident Mark Freeman has worn several hats at Kirkland Museum over the years. He is a longtime member, docent, artist whose work is in our collection, collector of Vance Kirkland’s work, and a former staff member – Freeman welcomed guests at the Museum’s original location on Saturdays!
“It’s just such an important place, especially if you’re a Colorado resident,” he says. “You need to know the history of the art and artists that came before you and who are hopefully inspiring artists today.”
We talked to Freeman about why he’s chosen to support Kirkland Museum through so many ways and he shares his tips for the best way to make the most of your next visit.
Behind the Scenes of Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco
When Kirkland Museum visitors step into our latest exhibition, Becca Goodrum wants them to feel transported to Prohibition-Era America.
“I was always really excited about the idea of following a woman through one night in her life,” Kirkland Museum’s curatorial associate explains of the inspiration for Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco.
That woman is the fictional Mabel, whose voice, along with Goodrum’s and that of fictional speakeasy bartender Charlie, will guide guests through the exhibition.
“You’re in her bedroom, getting ready with her for a night out on the town, and then you follow her into a speakeasy,” Goodrum explains.
All the items in the exhibition are designed and manufactured in America between 1920 and 1933, offering a focused look at a critical part of the Art Deco movement. This was by design, as a complement to Kirkland Museum’s broader presentation of Art Deco in Gallery 6.
“Most of it is glassware,” Goodrum says of the items on display for Vanity & Vice. “(They fit) in two distinct spaces: a woman’s boudoir or in a speakeasy. It allowed for more playful things to come out.” Many items are on display for the first time, from powder jars and two-toned glassware to a Kopp chandelier and a drawing by Vance Kirkland.
Goodrum shared some of her favorite pieces. The Vamp Powder Jar is soft pink and the top of the lid is a flapper’s head. Created c.1930, it alternates with floral motifs and a nude woman with outstretched arms. The Bunny “Cotton Tail” Dispenser, designed in the 1930s and manufactured by Paden City Glass Manufacturing Company, is a demure blue bunny, with cotton products dispensed from the tail. Other elements include a modernistic chandelier designed in 1928 by Nicholas Kopp. This chandelier, which features orange sconces, has never been displayed. Last, Goodrum was able to bring Vance Kirkland into the exhibition with a never-before-shown drawing of a flapper that the artist created at 16.
Goodrum thought it was imperative that the show display some fashion from the era. History Colorado generously loaned pieces from their collection that have not been shown for some time.
The curator hopes that Vanity & Vice will give viewers a sense of American Art Deco and the impacts of Prohibition and the Great Depression. She’s also hopeful it will help viewers understand what it was like to be a woman during this transformational era.
“There’s a real focus in the exhibition about women of this period and how much had changed for them with getting the right to vote in 1920, and with Prohibition coming in, it had this interesting effect of allowing women into spaces where they weren’t previously welcomed.”
The exhibition is on display until January 12, 2025. Goodrum says the audio tour or a private tour are ideal ways to see the show. Guests may access the 20-minute audio tour via the Bloomberg Connects app or by scanning the QR codes in the exhibition. Visitors can listen to each audio tour stop on their phone as if taking a phone call, but we recommend bringing headphones.
A visit during Art After Hours is enriched with food and drinks every third Friday. Goodrum will also be on hand in July to discuss the era and answer questions during a Curator Talk. Learn more about these opportunities below.
Kirkland Museum Merges with Denver Art Museum
We shared this exciting news last month: Kirkland Museum and the Denver Art Museum (DAM) have entered a transformative merger that will enhance the cultural landscape of Denver and beyond.
Kirkland Museum will become the Kirkland Institute of Fine & Decorative Art at the Denver Art Museum, adding its renowned collection of decorative art, specific focus on Colorado artists and extensive holdings of artist Vance Kirkland to the DAM’s world art collection and widely recognized program serving a broad spectrum of audiences.
What this means for members
Beginning June 1, 2024, your Kirkland Museum membership evolved to a Denver Art Museum membership allowing you access to both museums. Just check in at the Denver Art Museum Visitor Services desk and shops to gain free general admission and special discounts.
The full integration of both organizations will be completed over the next 12-18 months through a phased implementation of services and programs. This meticulous approach ensures a seamless transition and allows us to offer the most comprehensive programming possible.
We will share frequent updates with members throughout this journey to keep you apprised of progress and other enhancements to your experience and membership
Kirkland in the News
See the latest mentions of Kirkland Museum in the media:
Read about our Vanity & Vice exhibition in Avid Lifestyle.
Read coverage of our merger with the Denver Art Museum in The Denver Post, Denverite, 9NEWS, Denver Gazette, Westword, 5280 Magazine, Colorado Public Radio and The Art Newspaper.
New On View: Girl with Bobbed Hair, by Vance Kirkland
Among our collection of works by Kirkland Museum’s namesake is Girl with Bobbed Hair. The work was drawn with India ink on paper between 1920–1923 when Vance Kirkland was a teenager. This is one of the earliest drawings done by Kirkland in our collection and it is on display in the Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco exhibition.
Curator Talk & More Exciting Events
An Evening with the Curator
Planning Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco
Tuesday, July 23, 2024
6-7:30pm, Doors open at 5:30
Tickets available on Eventbrite: $20 members, $25 non-members
Ticket sales are open exclusively for Kirkland Museum members this week!
Hear a first-hand account from Kirkland Museum’s curatorial team describing the planning for and creation of Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco. Art Deco is a strength of the Kirkland’s collection and has been the focus of an exhibition idea since before the pandemic. From choosing objects from storage, to building a bar and dreaming up our character Mabel, get behind-the-scenes insights from Curatorial Associate Becca Goodrum, curator of the exhibition, accompanied by Interim Associate Director & Deputy Curator Christopher Herron and Director of Interpretation Maya Wright.
Gallery Glimpses: Curatorial Insights
Every First Thursday, Hourly 11am to 4pm
A celebration of Colorado art, one gallery at a time! Meet Kirkland Museum’s curatorial staff for an intimate, immersive experience focused on works by Colorado painters every first Thursday of the month through December. Foster a deeper connection to the artworks and Colorado artists who created them. This enlightening experience comes at no extra cost and requires no advance registration.
Please note, July’s Gallery Glimpses will be held on Thursday, July 11, due to the Fourth of July holiday. Join us for a special Colorado Day Gallery Glimpses on August 1 to commemorate the Centennial States admission to the United States.
Art After Hours
Third Friday of Each Month, 5pm to 7pm
The Museum’s doors remain open until 7pm every third Friday of the month through December. Indulge in a post-work escape, a charming date night or simply an opportunity to revel in the beauty of fine art & design. A cash bar and delectable nibbles await, adding an extra layer of sophistication to your Friday happy hour.
Members always enjoy free access.
What's In Store?
Shop in-store or online – members always receive 10% off their purchases!
Whether you are looking to buy a gift for a friend or one for yourself, be sure to stop by the Museum Store. We have an unrivaled selection of Deco-tastic-inspired products. Browse handmade jewelry from David Aubrey. Take home stunning vintage-inspired hand-blown perfume bottles from Boise Art Glass. Or, choose from a wide array of products that embody the Prohibition-era American Art Deco aesthetic of our latest exhibition Vanity & Vice.
Members Receive 10% Off New Art Deco Private Guided Tour
Add the 10% discount on our private guided tours to your list of perks as a Kirkland Museum member. For a deep dive into Art Deco, a tour with one of our expert curatorial associates or docents will unlock hidden stories and insights from our renowned Art Deco display in Gallery 6 and our latest exhibition, Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco.
Call 303.832.8576 ext. 202 for more information or to schedule your tour.
Relive Museum Magic with FREE Lectures!
Explore a treasure trove of educational programming from 2021 to 2023, including recordings from our engaging Eat, Drink, Sit Salon Series. Click here for your exclusive access:
Elevate Your Impact: Discover 2024 Sponsorship Opportunities!
Let’s collaborate to elevate arts and culture together. To start the conversation, contact [email protected].
Meet Longtime Supporter Mark Freeman
Full Story
Denver resident Mark Freeman has worn several hats at Kirkland Museum over the years. He is a longtime member, docent, artist whose work is in our collection, collector of Vance Kirkland’s work, and a former staff member – Freeman welcomed guests at the Museum’s original location on Saturdays!
“It’s just such an important place, especially if you’re a Colorado resident,” he says. “You need to know the history of the art and artists that came before you and who are hopefully inspiring artists today.”
We talked to Freeman about why he’s chosen to support Kirkland Museum through so many ways and he shares his tips for the best way to make the most of your next visit.
How did you first become interested in Vance Kirkland and supporting Kirkland Museum?
I saw Vance Kirkland’s paintings at an art gallery that was in the University of Denver area. I saw a first period litho crayon drawing. I thought, that’s insane. I really wish I’d bought that. Then later on, in the same gallery space, I saw one of his fifth-period dot paintings, and I was like, wait a minute, that’s the same guy … and I love that (piece), too.
I just got intrigued. I had been wanting to get into volunteerism at a museum. This is probably 2010, 2011, when I reached out, and I just said, hey, I’m interested in volunteering. I was there literally every Saturday for years as a gallery attendant and then eventually as a docent.
You’ve worn a lot of hats with Kirkland Museum – tell us how all this engagement unfolded.
There were two or three years when I actually worked as an employee of the Museum – before we moved to the new space. I would open the Museum (on Saturdays) and just make sure everything was ready for guests – pretty much like a guest services person. They needed an extra employee on the weekends, so that’s what I provided.
I did that until the Museum closed at 13th and Pearl, and after it opened again, I asked if I could come back as a volunteer. I just wanted to support the Museum, so I became a member as well.
Jeff Wenzel is another artist who is in the Museum’s collection. I met him at the Museum at an event we did. I told him how much I loved his work, and he said, well, I’m about to start a class and you should join it.
I took this class for several years. I came back in 2016. I said, you gotta get serious about this, you’ve got to really buckle down and have a focus. I just started building and creating and finally found my voice.
In 2021, I had my first solo ceramic pop-up show. I invited (Founding Director & Curator Emeritus Hugh Grant) and the rest of the people at Kirkland. Hugh came on closing night. He just fell in love with this one piece, and he bought it. It was the biggest compliment I think I’ve ever gotten – someone who is so into collecting and understanding modern art, and that he wanted a piece of mine in the collection.
He told me that night, I only collect unique pieces, things I’ve never seen before. I’ve never seen anything like what you’re doing.
The show was called Obsolescence. It was about these religious monuments that were lost in the jungles for 1,000 years and how they were re-found, but the religion fell out of favor, so the places were abandoned.
(The piece is) a triptych, it’s three individual clay pieces. It’s called Altars to the Blue Moon. There was another three-foot-tall piece (called Towering Shrine) that he loved a lot, and I donated that piece to the Museum. That’s how I got into the collection. It was very humbling.
What else has happened since then?
I continue to give tours as needed. Now, I’m getting trained to give tours on (Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco).
Now that I’ve been at the Kirkland, I see design pieces, I fall in love with them and then I just start looking for them in the world. Every once in a while, I find them.. I love Midcentury Modern, I love Art Deco, so that’s the focus. But every once in a while, I’ll find a really cool Arts & Crafts piece. For me, it’s about saving it for posterity, saving it for historical purposes.
What’s your approach when giving a tour?
I want people to leave a tour and leave the Museum with a better understanding of who Vance Kirkland is because for me he’s a genius – he’s an absolute artistic genius – and he’s just not really well known.
I hope to educate people about him and how dedicated and how passionate he was, not only as an artist but as a teacher and instructor. It’s fun to see people leave the Museum going, I will study more about this artist.
What are the things that you know you enjoy most about Kirkland Museum, or things that you always try to highlight on tours?
When I’m going through the galleries, I’m most excited about the Midcentury Modern and I love the Art Deco and the Postmodern. I highlight the Gio Ponti items in the Modern Room. I love his work, and I also tie it back to the fact that Vance Kirkland and Gio Ponti knew each other.
I spend most of my tour time in the original studio space, and I go over all (Kirkland’s) periods in detail and just immerse you in what Vance was doing then, what was important to him, and the important things that happened to him during that time.
For me, it’s most important that people leave my tour with a sense of who Vance Kirkland is, and his importance to art history in general.
Are there specific works that have caught your eye recently?
There are several of Kirkland’s works that I could stand in front of all day long and just be enraptured by.
There’s (Colorado Moonlight). It’s a first-period piece, so Designed Realism, and it has a green hue to it. It’s in the forest, and there are rocks and trees and these beautiful shadows that are cast across the rocks and the ground. The light is coming from the moon but you can’t see it. The first time it was up, I was just obsessed with it. The power behind the piece is palpable, in my eyes. It just completely draws you in.
His favorite period, for me, is the surrealist pieces. He does something unique. I don’t see people doing Surrealism with nature to the degree that he did.
You can see the passion in what he does.
What advice or tips do you have for people when they visit the Museum?
One comment I hear a lot is, it’s overwhelming because there’s a lot on display.
First, I say become a member. Then you can come back whenever you want and you can spend a day in one room if that’s what you want, and really get to know the pieces in there.
But if you’ve got an hour and a half, I just say walk through the rooms. Look for things that grab your attention and spend time with them, then go on to the next room. Make sure you hit all the rooms, but even if you’re just looking at one or two pieces in each room when you don’t have as much time, you’ll still get an understanding of what the collection is about, the power of the collection and the importance of the collection.
Why is it so important to you to support, and continue to support, Kirkland Museum in the variety of ways that you have?
I believe in the mission of the Museum. I believe it’s important to highlight Colorado art because there were amazing artists who were teaching and painting here in the 19th and 20th centuries, and even into the 21st century you’re seeing a high caliber of art being produced in Colorado and the region.