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'Modern Masters' Puts Surrealists On Display

DENVER (CBS4) - Some of the world's most famous artwork featuring surrealism is on display at the Denver Art Museum's "Modern Masters" exhibit.

"The Modern Masters were not subtle," said curator Dean Sobel. "They wanted to create images that would engulf the viewer."

The paintings take over rooms, regardless of their size, and their colors are bold and electrifying.

Modern Masters
CBS4's Lauren Whitney and curator Dean Sobel look at a piece in the Modern Masters exhibit at the Denver Art Museum (credit: CBS)

"Where we are standing in particular it becomes part of our the field of vision and it becomes actually more of an environment," said Sobel as he stood in front of a large painting by Clyfford Still.

Not all paintings on display for the exhibit are abstract. The surrealists make their own mark.

"So the imagery that you see is dream-like and very strange," said Denver Art Museum Master Teacher Stefania Van Dyke. "The surrealists and Dali, in particular, were playing with this double imagery."

Modern Masters
(credit: CBS)

The Modern Masters exhibit offers up more than 70 pieces of art from the most influential artists of the 20th century.

The iconic works all come from the world-famous collection at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York.

LINK: denverartmuseum.org/exhibitions

The surrealists used a few key techniques.

"It was a way of releasing what was inside," said Van Dyke. "They were kind of tapping into their dreams for inspiration and their subconscious."

Modern Masters
(credit: CBS)

Modern Masters runs through June 8 at the Denver Art Museum. Tickets are $20 for adults.

RELATED: Denver Art Museum Offers A Glimpse Into Art's Modern Masters

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