A little while ago the boy and I had another stay-at-home day adventure.  This time, we went to the MCA Denver, which he calls his “Heart Museum” because of the cool spinning light up heart sculpture right outside the door.  We drive past it every day on our way home and spend just enough time to have figured out the sequence of events.  First the heart and ribbon are all lit up, then it starts to beat, then the sword goes through and the heart (to my eyes) goes into ventricular fibrillation, then all the blood drains out, and the cycle starts anew.  It’s delightful.

We took the bus to get there, sparing the need for parking and getting us $1 off the entrance ticket and looked around.

Honestly, he wasn’t terribly impressed except for one installation, 10,483,200 Minutes, pictured below.  I particularly enjoyed a photography series, but the art isn’t as accesible to the sippy-cup set as the stuff at the DAM.  I loved the atmosphere there and the building itself–stark and spare.

That last pic is the boy filling out a form tied to the artwork.  It asks you to select your favorite forms and colors from a few options, and on the back is a mini-questionnaire.  They somehow use this to create future works.  Here’s what the boy answered to the questions asked.

A bit tough to read, I know, but better if you click and enlarge. I particularly like the answer to : “If we all work together toward one thing, what might that be?”  Which was: “Obama.”  Parental brainwashing at work.

Upstairs they have a cool space, filled with fatboy beanbags, that looks over the city.  Just next to it is a free art/collage space in which we spent a bit of time.

The best part for the boy, though, was the cafe on top of the museum.  They have yummy sandwiches and desserts and have a nice selection of games, and we played a few rounds of ConnectFour.  The boy even won a game!! I couldn’t believe it.  I NEVER let little kids win.  I’m too competitive and I figure they have to learn how to lose graciously sooner or later.  Then, much to my chagrin, the boy saw that they had Candyland on the shelf and insisted we play.  I HATE Candyland.  There’s no skill involved to the game, and I can’t always win.  Dumb, dumb concept.

We passed by the library on the way home and stopped in to check out some new books and I got a glimpse into what the future holds:

After we got home, I actually LOOKED at the comics that we checked out (in a hurry, so as not to miss the bus) and realized that they were entirely inappropriate and were soon confiscated, which only made them more appealing.

Overall, I enjoyed the MCA but don’t think I’d take the little ones there again until they’re a bit older, or if they have a special exhibition that would appeal to them.  I understand that they want to maintain a space that is hip and doesn’t have kids running around, which is great. Still, I think it would be cool if they could have more kid-friendly stuff to expose them to that art.  Maybe a monthly event? That I would definitely attend with boy in tow…if I can drag him away from Spider-Man for a bit.