Clyfford Still thought the best way to experience his art was by seeing it all in one place without the distraction of, or what he thought were irrelevant comparisons to, other artists. In 1951, at the very time demand for his work grew, Still ended his relationship with his art dealer and from that time forward, only a select few of his works entered the art market.
Still entrusted his life’s work to an unnamed American city. More than 20 American cities contended to receive the collection. Patricia Still chose Denver as the location to receive this world class colleciton in 2004, and the Museum opened its doors in November 2011. As a result, the Clyfford Still Museum is home to nearly everything he created, approximately 3,125 pieces representing more than 93% of his lifetime of work.
By the Numbers
The collection consists of approximately 830 paintings and more than 2,300 works on paper and sculpture, including:
- 130 paintings dating from 1920–1943: works from Still’s student years, Depression-era works, Surrealist-inspired works, and first forays into abstraction
- 302 paintings dating from 1944–1960: Still’s “breakthrough period” and the years of “high” Abstract Expressionism, an era when many canvases span over ten feet
- 350 paintings dating from 1961–1979: works from the final two decades of his life, created in rural Maryland
- 2,300 works on paper spanning all aspects of Still’s career in a wide range of media such as pastel, crayon, charcoal, gouache, tempera, graphite, and pen and ink, as well as fine art prints in a variety of techniques
- 3 carved wood and mixed media sculptures
In addition to the artworks, the Museum is also home to the artist’s archives of letters, sketchbooks, manuscripts, photo albums, and personal effects.
A Note about Titles (the PH- numbers)
When looking at Clyfford Still’s artworks in the galleries or online, you may notice that they do not have titles. In fact, Still specifically did not assign titles to his artworks because he wanted people to make their own interpretations of what they see, think, or feel when looking at his work. After 1947, he stopped titling his work and removed all titles for all artworks he made before that date. The numbers that follow the PH refer to inventory PHotograph numbers the artist assigned to each work. Other abbreviations include PP (PHoto of Pastel), PD (PHoto of Drawing), PL (PHoto of Lithograph), etc.
While exploring the galleries, look at the PH- number next to an artwork. If it has a small, yellow rectangle next to it, that means the artwork is on view for the first time. Most exhibitions at the Clyfford Still Museum include artworks on view for the first time.
