Museum of Contemporary Art Denver

MCA Denver was founded in 1996 in a converted fish market in Sakura Square and moved in 2007 into this David Adjaye building at 15th and Delgany, the architect's first museum in the United States: a translucent glass-and-steel box with five galleries, no permanent collection and a rooftop café and bar with a lawn and a view of the Platte valley. Shows rotate two or three times a year; the summer-fall 2026 show is 'Colorado Currents,' a survey of Colorado artists (July 24 to November 1, 2026). Admission is $15 for Colorado residents ($18 non-residents), $5 after 5pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and free for anyone 18 and under. As of late July 2026 the museum is closed Tuesdays as well as Mondays. Drop-in tours run Friday and Saturday at 1pm. The Art Lending Library lets Denver residents borrow a real artwork for ten months, free.

Why go. Two hours of serious art and a rooftop drink, for the price of a cocktail.

Go Wednesday or Thursday after 5pm for the $5 ticket and a slow rooftop hour before it closes at 7; the museum is a five-minute walk from Union Station down 15th.