Early risers may have an advantage when planning a day trip to Crystal Bridges from the New York area.
Ben Whine, the head of The Patron Circle of the Guggenheim Museum, planned a perfect day trip for its members (bwhine@guggenheim.org). We woke up with the sun to catch the morning United flight from Newark, and arrived a few hours later at the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport. After a 30 minute ride, we found ourselves immersed in a structural and artistic marvel. Alice Walton, daughter of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club founder Sam Walton, created Crystal Bridges and open the museum in 2011. Walton funds the museum with an $800 million dollar endowment from the The Walton Family Foundation.
The museum collection emphasizes American Art and spans five centuries, featuring many iconic pieces such as George Washington (ca. 1780-1782) by Charles Wilson Peale, Asher Durand’s, Kindred Spirits (1849) and Rosie the Riveter (1943) by Norman Rockwell. My personal favorite is Dolly Parton (1985) by Andy Warhol — with her big blond hair and red lips, she represents the warmth and sweetness of the South.
I was immediately stunned by the architecture of the museum — a knockout in every way. The glass, stone, and wood structure was designed by architect Moshe Safdie. It is situated on Crystal Springs, which acts as a beautiful mirror reflecting the building in the water. Large curved glass windows are a prominent feature throughout the buildings and one sees nature — water, trees and sky, at every angle.
The pavillion in which we had lunch quickly became my favorite. Eleven, the restaurant at Crystal Bridges, is the “center core” of the surrounding structures. Enveloped by walls made of curved glass, we ate lunch while admiring the wooden beams that arched across the ceiling. Eleven is spectacular in every way.
After viewing the art in the interior of the museum, we took a walk on the Crystal Bridges’ Art Trail, ending up at the site-specific commission by James Turrell, The Way of Color (2009.) This “Skyspace” is a circular stone building with an opening at the top through which to marvel at the sky. It is a delight to sit on a bench and watch the sky’s shifting colors and shapes. On the way back to the airport, we stopped in Bentonville and visited the Walmart Visitor Center that one enters by walking through the original 5&10 which Sam Walton opened in 1950. The Visitors Center highlights Walton’s business life, even displaying his iconic 1979 Ford F 150 pickup truck.
Many goodies will tempt you as you exit the Visitors Center. Of course, I could not resist buying Made in America, Sam Walton’s autobiography. This entrepreneur’s guiding principles of life are to “Work very hard and live below your means.”
Walmart Visitors Center is free and is open 6:30 am – 9:00 pm Monday-Saturday and 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm on Sunday. (105 N. Main Street, Bentonville, AR)
Crystal Bridges is open Monday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from11 am to 6 pm, and Wednesday Friday from 11 am to 9 pm. (www.crystalbridges.org, 600 Museum Way, Bentonville AR, 72712)
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Crystal Bridges
600 Museum Way
Bentonville, AR
72712
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