46. Paramount Theatre
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 623-0106
Address: 1621 Glenarm Place
Description: This historic art deco theater has more than once been on the verge of falling to the wrecker’s ball. Built in 1930 by Temple Hoyne Buell, a prominent Denver architect, the theater is the epitome of art deco style and has one of only two Mighty Wurlitzer organs in the country (the other is at Radio City Music Hall in New York City). During the summer of 1994—under new management yet again—the Paramount underwent extensive remodeling. The Paramount seats 1,870 and presents a mixed bag of comedy, lectures, dance, film, and live music. Recent seasons have included jazz greats Chick Corea and John McLaughlin, Grateful Dead member Bob Weir, and classic metal from Styx and Queensryche.
47. The Pepsi Center
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 405-1100
Address: 1000 Chopper Place
Description: Home to the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche, the Pepsi Center also hosts big-name shows. The arena seats up to 16,000, with a killer sound system and jumbo TV screens so everyone in the house has good views of the stage. In recent years, stars ranging from Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, and Steve Winwood to country greats Keith Urban and Sugarland have made tour stops here.
48. Red Rocks Amphitheatre
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (720) 865-4220
Description: Red Rocks Amphitheatre is one of the most spectacular settings anywhere for a concert. About half the size of Comfort Dental Amphitheatre, Red Rocks is a natural red sandstone amphitheater set deep into the foothills on Hogback Road near Morrison (take I-70 west to the Morrison exit and follow the signs). It was renovated in 2003 to include a $16 million visitor center. Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, David Byrne, Tom Petty, Peter Gabriel, Mark Knopfler, James Taylor, Emmylou Harris, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir are among the groups to have stopped here during recent tours.
49. Swallow Hill Music Association
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 777-1003
Address: 71 E. Yale Ave.
Insider Pick:
Description: The well-respected Swallow Hill Music Association is Denver’s center for folk, roots, and traditional acoustic music. Concerts are held at two theaters, the largest of which seats 300. Swallow Hill also presents concerts elsewhere in the city, including summer concerts at Four Mile Historical Park.
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Address: 100 W. 14th Ave. Pkwy.
51. Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 832-8576
Address: 1311 Pearl St.
Description: Vance Kirkland may be Colorado’s best-known painter. His work spans realism, surrealism, abstraction, abstract expressionism, and dot paintings, and his career stretched from 1926 to 1981. The museum showcases more than 600 of his paintings as well as housing a 2,000-object decorative arts collection and more than 300 works from Colorado artists. The building itself is worthy of note. Built in 1910–11, it’s the second-oldest commercial art building in Colorado, designed in the Arts and Crafts style, and it served as Kirkland’s studio. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday. Children younger than age 13 are not admitted; children age 13 to 17 must be accompanied by an adult. Tours are offered daily.
52. Museo de las Americas
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 571-4401
Address: 861 Santa Fe Dr.
Description: This museum is the only one in the Rocky Mountain region dedicated to Latin American art, history, and culture. Officially opened in July 1994, the Museo de las Americas showcases art from all the Americas, including the Caribbean, in changing exhibitions. The museum supplements its temporary exhibitions with lectures, workshops, and other educational programs and has built a small permanent collection. It has twice shown an exhibition jointly with the Denver Art Museum, with some of the material at the art museum and some at the Museo. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, and it’s free on First Fridays 5 to 9 p.m.
53. Museum of Outdoor Arts
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 806-0444
Address: 1000 Englewood Pkwy.
Description: Bringing art into everyday life, the Museum of Outdoor Arts (MOA) is located in and around the Englewood City Center and Greenwood Plaza. Their headquarters is at the Englewood Civic Center, but art at this “museum without walls” can be found in botanic gardens, office parks, city parks, and traditional sculpture gardens around the area. MOA is open to the public Tuesday through Friday during daylight hours. Details about their philosophy, location, and art tours can be found online.
54. The Foothills Art Center
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 279-3922
Description: The Foothills Art Center is much smaller than the Arvada Center, but it is home to two prestigious national exhibitions—the biannual North American Sculpture Exhibition and Colorado Art Open and the annual Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Exhibition. It offers arts classes and hosts the statewide annual Colorado Clay exhibition. The center’s schedule is composed of changing exhibits of national and regional arts and fine crafts.
55. Center for Visual Art
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 294-5207
Address: 1734 Wazee St.
Description: Technically a college gallery, the Center for Visual Art seldom shows student work, but rather puts on some of the best and most provocative exhibitions in town. Traveling exhibits are booked years in advance for the purpose of art education. Past exhibitions have included contemporary Chinese painting, African-American quilts, and baseball paraphernalia from local collections.
56. David Cook Fine Art
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 623-8181
Address: 1637 Wazee St.
Description: David Cook offers a wide range of artists and styles, but its specialties are American regional art from the 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as historic American Indian art, from Navajo rugs to Pueblo pottery, from beadwork to baskets. You can also find antique jewelry and paintings of the Rockies by early Colorado artists.
57. Knox Galleries
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 820-2324
Address: 1512 Larimer St.
Description: Knox Gallery is one of the nation’s premier bronze sculpture galleries. Located in Writer Square, the gallery represents local and regional painters and sculptors. Their sculpture garden is in Writer Square Plaza.
58. Old Map Gallery
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 296-7725
Address: 1550 Wynkoop St.
Description: If you’re in the market for antique maps, this is the place. You’ll find historic maps such as ones from the 16th century or maps of Louisiana before it was purchased. Maps range from $35 to several thousand dollars.
59. Plus Gallery
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 296-0927
Address: 2501 Larimer St.
Description: Since 2001 Ivar Zeile has been showcasing the works of emerging as well as nationally known talents from his Ballpark neighborhood gallery. In 2009 he moved to a spiffier space just 5 blocks north of LoDo. Shows rotate every 6 weeks and include sculpture, photography, painting, video, paper, and installation art. The gallery is open Wednesday through Saturday and by appointment at other times.
60. Robischon Gallery
City: Denver, CO
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (303) 298-7788
Address: 1740 Wazee St.
Description: Robischon Gallery has been open in Denver since 1976, providing a space for regional, national, and international artists that include Robert Motherwell, Manuel Neri, Christo, and Jeanne-Claude. It specializes in contemporary art of all kinds, as well as emerging young artists.