64 MARCH 27-APRIL 2, 2025 westword.com WESTWORD | MUSIC & VENUES | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | SPORTS & RECREATION | SHOPPING & SERVICES | CONTENTS | Best Hidden Gem Chicky the Prairie Dog Denver Museum of Nature & Science 2001 Colorado Boulevard 303-370-6000 dmns.org The phrase “hidden gem” is like nails on a chalkboard to those who consider it over- used, but it’s defi nitely apt for one display at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science: Chicky, a taxidermied prairie dog. Those in the know can fi nd the little fella waving from inside a Brazilian amethyst geode in the Gems and Minerals exhibition, a mainstay on the fi rst fl oor. This hidden gem is just one of many touches at the museum that makes it worth the $25.95 admission price for adults; kids and seniors can visit for less. Best Museum If You Only Have an Hour Clyfford Still Museum 1250 Bannock Street 720-354-4880 clyffordstillmuseum.org Although it’s possible to spend hours delving into the life and art of abstract expression- ist Clyfford Still, museum visitors who only have an hour to spare won’t feel like they’re missing anything after making a quick tour of the museum’s nine galleries. Still wanted all of his art to have a home together so that people could better understand his work as a whole, and when John Hicken- looper was mayor of Denver, he worked to win the collection and push construction of the museum. Situated adjacent to other cultural attractions, including the Denver Art Museum, the Still Museum is the perfect refuge for anyone who needs a quiet hour to immerse themselves in creativity. Best Place to Feel Like a Kid Again Rocket Launching Station Children’s Museum of Denver 2121 Children’s Museum Drive 303-433-7444 mychildsmuseum.org The Children’s Museum of Denver aims to “champion the wonder and joy of child- hood,” according to its mission statement, and it absolutely succeeds with its rocket- launching station. Part of the museum’s ex- hibit devoted to teaching kids about energy, the station lets visitors make paper airplanes of various forms before using compressed air to shoot the “rockets” into a solar system. The task is trickier than it seems, but some- how, there are paper creations stuck all the way up in the rafters. Try it, and your stress will melt away — at least until the nine-year- old next to you creates a rocket that com- pletely outmatches yours. Best Art Experience for Neurodiverse Kids Sensory-Friendly Mornings Denver Art Museum 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway 720-865-5000 denverartmuseum.org All visitors ages eighteen and under are admitted free at the Denver Art Museum, thanks to the Bellco Free for Kids Program; Sensory Friendly Mornings, offered quar- terly on the second Sunday of the month, is another of the DAM’s no-cost family programs. Museums can get loud and overwhelming, and the Sensory Friendly program was designed with neurodiverse children or kids with sensory processing disorders in mind. The museum opens early and dims the lights for the program, which includes art projects, storytelling and maybe some visitors from McNicholas Min- iatures Therapy Horses. Best Way to Appreciate the Denver Botanic Gardens in Mid-Winter Freyer-Newman Center 1007 York Street 720-865-3500 botanicgardens.org When the weather outside is frightful, fi nd refuge in the Denver Botanic Gardens’ Freyer-Newman Center, where you can stop at the coffee shop, relax in the plant and fungi herbaria, and take in an exhibit themed in areas such as the environment, natural fi bers, water conservation or horti- culture. Aspiring artists can attend classes at the School of Botanical Art & Illustration, while the Sturm Family Auditorium shows short fi lms. The center’s galleries are in- cluded with DBG admission, as is the Helen Fowler Library, which houses a signifi cant collection of botanical and horticultural materials about the Rocky Mountain region. Best Reason to Drive to Loveland Benson Sculpture Garden 1125 West 29th Street, Loveland 970-962-2327 sculptureinthepark.org/about-benson Open year-round and free to the public, the ten-acre Benson Sculpture Garden com- prises 178 permanent works by world-re- nowned artists. The garden was conceived in 1984 by fi ve Loveland artists envisioning an outdoor sculpture exhibition; the result is a mostly bronze collection that features whimsical animals such as a Great Dane offering a high-fi ve, kids dancing in a circle with an open spot for an observer to join in, and several water-themed structures in the small lake. Handicap-accessible sidewalks, easy parking, picnic areas and a public rest- room make for a peaceful afternoon for all ages. The sculpture garden is open to the public, and the art is free to view. Best Place to Support Artists With Disabilities and Score Original Art Access Gallery 909 Santa Fe Drive 303-777-0797 accessgallery.org At Access Gallery, in the heart of the Santa Fe arts district, special-needs artists hone their visual-arts skills with the help of es- tablished local artists, then display their work in the gallery, receiving a percentage of the sale price while the rest goes back into the organization. The artists are also available for graphic design work, custom murals and corporate commissions. Or buy a joyous and colorful original piece from a vintage cigarette-turned-art-vending ma- chine. Access also has an inclusive studio where artists can explore and build their skill sets in different mediums. Best Activist Artist Danielle SeeWalker seewalker.com Danielle SeeWalker had a major year in 2024. The local artist, who is Hunkpapa Lakota and a citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota, is commit- ted to showcasing the history and culture of her people through visual art, whether it’s in murals around the city and coun- try, or through paintings and multimedia work, which she’s shown in galleries and museums in Denver and beyond. In 2024, she curated an exhibition of Native art at the Colorado Capitol, and her own work was seen in a substantial exhibit at History Colorado. And since 2013, she’s brought Native stories to life through the Red Road Project, a photodocumentary exhibition she created with her best friend that had its fi rst show in Italy and is now touring around the U.S. Best Use of Doll Heads Paul Moschell Studio 7777 East 1st Place instagram.com/paulmoschell Located in a commercial/residential building in Lowry, this unexpected, friendly studio houses a startling dis- play of Victorian-steampunk dolls made of repurposed parts. Assemblages have homemade glass eyes and are festooned with vintage trims and baubles. West- word once reported that artist Paul Mos- chell doubles as a sweet-hearted animal lover and an eccentric-about-town when he’s not painting whimsical characters on matchboxes or building disturbing pieces out of doll parts and other objects. His work is well-rounded: A decade ago, he won a Best of Denver award for Best Artistic Hats. “I am a novelty. I create luxuries,” Moschell writes in his Insta- gram bio. The studio is open by appoint- ment only. Best Haunted House Haunted Field of Screams 10451 McKay Road, Thornton hauntedfi eldofscreams.com Your worst Children of the Corn nightmares come true at Haunted Field of Screams… in the best way. Unlike at many Denver haunted houses, you won’t run through the cornfi eld in fi ve minutes after waiting an hour in line. Attendees get a true bang for their buck, spending forty minutes walking through the corn and encountering multi- ple mini haunted houses along the way, not to mention the “gates of hell” hayride that kicks off the festivities. Plus, Haunted Field of Screams backs up to Riverdale Road, the subject of countless urban legends of hauntings. So who knows? You might just catch a glimpse of a real ghoul amid the costumed actors. Best Sex-Positive Space The Sexploratorium/The Museum of Sex 1800 South Broadway 720-242-8398 sexploratoriumdenver.com When partners Fawn and Casey O’Breitzman opened the Sexploratorium in 2023, it seemed like one of those things Denver never had but was missing all along: a space that was openly pro-sex, and where all manner of events, classes and work- shops could collide safely, smartly and sensuously. The Sexploratorium hosts ev- erything from Kink Tasting parties, where patrons can get a sample of fetishes they may have never had a chance to encounter, to Queer Movie Nights and Nude Yoga. Ed- ucation and eroticism abound, and that was even before the Sexploratorium added its annex, the Museum of Sex, a wonderland of sex-positive history. continued on page 66 a r t s & e n t e r t a i n m e n t ILLUSTRATIONS BY GETT Y IMAGES/DENIS NOVIKOV
