BENTONVILLE — Described recently in the Washington Post as “this country’s newest major cultural institution,” Crystal Bridges Museum of American Arts in Bentonville will open its doors Friday, Nov. 11. Designed by noted architect Moshe Safdie, Crystal Bridges becomes the reality of its founder Alice Walton’s vision of an overview of American art on exhibit. This overview incorporates every period of American history in its art collection: colonial, 19th century, modern and contemporary.
With an endowment of $800 million from the Walton Family Foundation, Crystal Bridges’ efforts for more than five years have gone toward acquiring a prized art collection created by such notable American artists as Gilbert Stuart, Asher Durand, Norman Rockwell and Andy Warhol.
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“Celebrating the American Spirit,” the inaugural exhibition for Crystal Bridges, will be sponsored by General Electric, Coca-Cola, and Goldman Sachs. The exhibit will showcase the museum’s permanent collection housed in 12 galleries in four separate buildings and arranged chronologically to provide a journey through American history.
Situated on 120 acres of natural beauty, Crystal Bridges is nestled in the lush landscape of walking trails and gardens that surround it. The building layout encompasses more than 200,000 square feet of galleries, meeting and education rooms, café, offices, library, museum store, community showcase and a great hall.
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In addition to the galleries that will house the art collections, the museum’s library will hold 50,000 art reference items that include an art reference collection of books, artists’ monographs, exhibit and auction catalogs, periodicals and museum bulletins. Available for private viewing will be the special collection and archives of artists’ books, rare manuscripts and rare book collections. Through the museum website, library patrons can access a searchable online catalog for reference purposes.
Education programs for area school field trips will be available through a recently announced endowment of $10 million to Crystal Bridges from the Willard & Pat Walker Charitable Foundation, making school visits possible to more than 14,000 students annually. The education department of Crystal Bridges is working with a School Advisory Committee of area schools on the Willard & Pat Walker School Visit Program. Online information is available at schools programs@crystalbridges.org.
For interactive educational fun, adults and children alike — either on family visits, church trips or school field trips — are encouraged to visit the Experience Studio where six hands-on areas are designed to guide guests of all ages in ways to look at and think about works of art.
Eleven, the museum’s restaurant, will offer lunch daily and Sunday brunch and dinner on Wednesdays and Fridays. Picnic lunches will also be available to take out on the surrounding grounds. Coffee at Eleven, a coffee bar, will offer a variety of gourmet coffee, beverages and snacks.
Located near the main lobby is the museum store, designed by Fayetteville’s award-winning architect, Marlon Blackwell. The store will offer educational and art-centric toys and games, books, gifts, jewelry and prints of many of the most popular works. An added feature of the store’s offerings will be original works by artists and artisans of the region on display, available for purchase.
Jennifer Dunham, volunteer services manager at Crystal Bridges and a member of St. Stephen Church in Bentonville, said “The most exciting part of my job here is to be the recipient of so much support from my co-workers and the community. The museum staff is truly grateful for the help they receive from the volunteers each day and they are so open to trying new things that utilize our volunteers’ talents. My goal is to create meaningful learning and serving opportunities for volunteers and unpaid interns in a welcoming environment.”
Overseeing several hundred volunteers, Dunham works with all of the museum divisions to determine the need for volunteers and unpaid interns in the various programs available in the museum, along with providing training, recruiting, scheduling and record keeping for her department.
“Education is a key part of our entire value system at Crystal Bridges and our volunteers will absolutely have a role in almost every program,” she said. “Personally, I believe that the effects of Crystal Bridges will cover a broad spectrum long term for just about everything and everyone in northwest Arkansas.”
Crystal Bridges Museum Opening Preview
Leading up to the grand opening Nov. 11, a 25-hour member preview event will take place between 9 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9 and 10 a.m., Thursday, Nov. 10. Because this event could draw as many as 12,000 people, it is recommended that guests arrive 30 minutes ahead of the time displayed on their tickets. Although there is no time limit on a visit, a tour of the museum could take several hours.
With membership currently more than 4,400, the museum has already begun accepting ticket requests for the preview event by phone and online to accommodate those members interested in attending. Membership costs range from $35 for students to $10,000 for guild members. Reserved timed tickets will be required for museum entry for both members and non-members through Jan. 2. Because general admission is sponsored by Wal-Mart, there is no cost to view the museum permanent collection. These tickets are available at www.crystalbridges.org or by calling (479) 418-5700.
Museum hours
Sunday,Wednesday and Friday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday: 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Tuesday: Closed
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