Let’s Go Inside and Outside Bentonville’s Crystal Bridges Museum
Next up from our visit to Bentonville is Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, a museum Hi-Fructose has been eager to visit for many years. It should be, if not already, a destination for anyone interested in contemporary art for its permanent collection as well as its roster of exciting temporary exhibitions. It is a thoroughly immersive art experience both inside and outside the museum walls which are set on a lush green landscape. The nature trails that weave through its grounds are peppered with unexpected outdoor sculptures by artists such as Dale Chihuly (see middle image below), Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Louise Bourgeois, James Turrell, and (a special favorite of mine) Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian house. It’s hard not to feel like a kid in a candy store inside the Crystal Bridges museum.
An overarching theme throughout the museum’s collection is the thoughtful attention to the placement of contemporary art next to classical. Also notable, the museum’s recognition of their own role as settlers and guests in the Northwest Arkansas region is evident throughout. An example are the didactics for the works in their Early American Art gallery, part of their permanent collection. The gallery is filled with incredible works frequently noted for their romanticized, spiritual, and nostalgic depictions of American landscapes. Crystal Bridges’ informative interpretations do not shy away from truth, privilege, and unacknowledged colonialism.
Crystal Bridges’ informative interpretations do not shy away from truth, privilege, and unacknowledged colonialism.
A half-hour walk from the museum is The Momentary, an extension of Crystal Bridges, which is housed within a decommissioned cheese factory and currently features two immersive exhibitions: Mystic Parallax by multidisciplinary artist Awol Erizku and Dark Waters by photographer Kristine Potter.
Mystic Parallax’s rich and exciting imagery blends Erikzu’s studio practice with the artists’ work, which was made as an in-demand editorial photographer. It features his conceptual portraits of leading Black cultural figures, such as Amanda Gorman, Michael B. Jordan, Pharrell Williams, and Solange. As Erizku has said, “It’s important for me to create confident, powerful, downright regal images of Black people.”
Kristine Potter’s haunting Dark Waters series reflects on the “’Southern Gothic’ landscape as evoked in the popular imagination of “murder ballads” from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.”
Aside from certain special exhibitions, Crystal Bridges entry is always free and their walking and biking trails and grounds are open from sunup to sunset which means that you can visit James Turrell’s Skyspace as it was meant to be viewed, either at dawn or sunset.
Below: Image gallery from Awol Erikzu’s ‘Mystic Parallax’ exhibition at The Momentary, followed by works found inside the Crystal Bridges Museum.
The Internet has changed the art world immensely, and Giant Robot has been there to witness and evolve alongside it. Conceived as a humble, photocopied zine focused on Asian American arts and culture in 1994, Giant Robot now exists as an unclassifiable entity. It was published as a magazine for 16 years and later manifested in the physical realm as an art gallery and shop, as well as a website. To celebrate its 20 years, Giant Robot 2 in LA will debut "Giant Robot Presents: 20 Years Art x Mags," an extensive group show featuring many established and emerging talents. Among the line-up are Yoshitomo Nara, Takashi Murakami, Ryan McGinness, Geoff McFetridge, Yoskay Yamamoto, Jeff Soto, James Jean and a great number of other artists. "#GR20Years," as the show is nicknamed, opens March 15, 5 - 10 pm, and will be on view through April 2.
