Here are few good things to know before heading to "Becoming van Gogh" at the Denver Art Museum through Jan. 20.

1. The audio tour is available in Spanish, a first for a major exhibit at DAM. The audio isn't crucial, but it's a great, $3 assist if you want to understand what curators Timothy Standring and Louis van Tilborgh are trying to say about van Gogh. You can spin it at your own pace.

2. The catalogue is the real deal. DAM spent a long time on the book, published through Yale University Press, and it's a terrific read. The essays, particularly by Standring and van Tilborgh, are compelling and easy-to-digest. The timeline puts everything in perspective and the colorful plates let you take a little van Gogh home with you. Even better, stop in at the gift shop and get it a few days before you go through the exhibit and you'll know exactly what to look for. I saw a few people show up at the exhibit with it, fully noted. That's a great idea, though at 287 pages, it's a lot to cart around.


3. Allow two hours minimum, though three is more like it. There's a story to follow so you can't just jam through. The crowds can slow things down, especially around the better work.

4. Don't miss the three self-portraits at the end. Most museums play this bit upfront, but Standring and van Tilborgh want visitors to form an opinion of van Gogh from his work, before they get fixed on what he looks like. It's clever, and the portraits are a full helping of dessert for folks who followed the story.

5. There's a special website with info on visits, local deals, parking and more:

6. People are having fun in the Paint Studio. The first-floor space is an interactive parlor where local artists will demonstrate how they work and regular visitors can try their hand at painting a still life. Kids were going crazy in there the other day, but so were the adults.

7. Since you've already paid for admission, check out a few other things at DAM, like the colorful and all-around amazing retrospective of African artist El Anatsui a few floors up. Another show, "Laura Letinsky: Still Life Photographs, 1997-2012"″opens Saturday and looks very promising.

And don't forget, the Clyfford Still Museum next door is doing a riff on DAM with "Vincent/Clyfford." The exhibit draws parallels between the two painters — a nice complement to "Becoming van Gogh."

Note: This story first appeared on the Artmosphere blog, at Visit it often for coverage of fine arts, classical music, literature and more.