The Denver Art Museum is pleased to join hundreds of national and international museums that have expanded access to their collection images through an Open Access initiative.
What Is Open Access?
The Denver Art Museum will make publication-quality color-corrected digital images of artworks it believes to be in the public domain (not covered by copyright) freely available for unrestricted use in accordance with the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation and the Terms and Conditions of this website.
Why Open Access?
Open Access is a logical extension of the Denver Art Museum’s mission and values in that we believe art has the power to forge connections, bridge differences, and transform lives. By broadening access to our online collection, we hope to inspire and encourage creativity and to spark new ideas.
What Images Are Available?
High-resolution JPEG files of works in the Denver Art Museum’s permanent collection that we believe to be in the public domain and those for which the museum waives any copyright interest it might have can be downloaded. We will continue to add more images as they become available.
These images are freely available, without restrictions, to support the research, teaching, and practice of art and art history. They are available for download on our online collection.
If an image is available under Open Access, a “download image” button will appear below the image of the artwork. These digital files are of sufficient quality for use in print publications.
If you require a high-quality TIFF file of an Open Access image, you can request it via our Online Image Request Form. Fees may apply.
Why Are Some Images Unavailable?
If an image of an artwork is not currently available under Open Access, it is for one or more of the following reasons:
- The work is still under copyright, or the copyright status is unclear.
- Privacy or publicity issues exist.
- The work is not fully owned by the Denver Art Museum.
- Contractual restrictions specified by the artist or donor preclude Open Access.
- Indigenous rights and cultural authority differ from US copyright law.
- The work has not yet been photographed, or the quality of the existing photography does not conform to the Denver Art Museum’s standards.
Open Access Policy
- While the Denver Art Museum believes these works to be in the public domain, we can only give permission with respect to the rights we have and make no guarantee that use of these images will not violate rights that other persons or entities may have under the laws of various countries. It is your responsibility to ascertain whether any such rights exist and to obtain any permission necessary to reproduce and publish the material.
- No copyright or other proprietary right in the image itself or in the underlying work of art that we may have is conveyed by making the image accessible. Furthermore, in making the image accessible, the Denver Art Museum does not grant the user an exclusive right to use or reproduce such an image or work of art.
- The information needed to properly cite the Denver Art Museum’s works can be found on the object records in the online collection. Properly crediting works enables others to identify and locate information about our collections. Please include the following credit line with any use of our Open Access images: Photography courtesy Denver Art Museum.
- Users may not imply that the Denver Art Museum endorses, approves, or has participated in any projects utilizing images obtained through our Open Access initiative.
- While there are no restrictions or conditions for the use of downloadable public-domain image files, the Denver Art Museum would appreciate receiving a gratis (free) copy of publications or projects containing our collection artworks. This helps us retain a bibliographic record of where objects are reproduced.
Please send copies to:
ATTN: Rights & Reproductions
Denver Art Museum
100 W. 14th Ave. Pkwy.
Denver, CO 80204
Please email digital copies to imagerights@denverartmuseum.org.
- If you are aware of any rights information associated with an image, please contact us at imagerights@denverartmuseum.org.
- To order images that don’t include a download button, please fill out our Image Rights Request Form. Please note, fees may apply to order.
- Questions? Please contact imagerights@denverartmuseum.org.
To inquire about image availability, please contact us at imagerights@denverartmuseum.org, and include the accession number, artist name, and title of the work of art in your e-mail. Depending on the image, fees may apply.
