Looking Ahead: The Crystal Bridges Expansion with Moira Anderson

A museum can add square footage without changing how people feel inside it. Crystal Bridges is doing the opposite. We talk with Moira Anderson, Director of Public Programs for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Momentary, about the June 6-7 opening that doubles gallery space and introduces a major new Learning and Engagement Hub built for rest, play, and hands-on creativity. If you have ever thought, “Museums aren’t for me,” this conversation is for you!

We get into what’s actually new: studio spaces including ceramics, a community lounge that welcomes you before you ever pick up a brochure, and performance and gathering rooms that make the museum feel like a place to stay, not just pass through. Moira explains why access means more than free admission, and how drop-in art making is designed for the person who has never touched a paintbrush, the family member who gets tired halfway through, and the first-time visitor who needs a clear signal that they belong. 

Then we preview the celebration weekend: creating alongside artists, a bike-powered pottery wheel, screen printing, and musicians from Jazz at Lincoln Center performing among the artworks and in the new Commons. We also talk about Bentonville, Arkansas as a fast-growing destination, the way Crystal Bridges blends art, architecture, and the Ozark landscape, and how programming connects across Crystal Bridges and the Momentary, including what’s coming next at the Momentary. 

If you’re planning a trip or looking for the best things to do in Bentonville, this will help you map a day that feels inspiring instead of exhausting. Subscribe, share this with a friend who “isn’t an art person,” and leave a review with the part of the museum experience you wish every city had.

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Transcript

Welcome And What’s New

Speaker 0:02

Welcome back to a new American Town. I'm your host, Graham Cobb, and I am thrilled to welcome Moira Anderson, Director of Public Programs for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Momentary. Moira, welcome to a new American Town.

Speaker 1 0:20

Hi, Graham. Happy to be here.

Doubling Gallery Space And Studios

Speaker 0:22

So for those who have not been following closely, what have you been doing? No, she's kidding. What's happening in June? What are you opening up that's new?

Speaker 1 0:31

Yeah, for those of uh you who have been watching all of the cranes in the backyard of the space. So we have just a little expansion of the museum opening up on June 6, 7. I know, I know, I see the 6-7. It's never gonna go away. We picked those dates before the meme, I promise. But yeah, we have double the gallery space opening up, a new temporary exhibition space opening up, new studios, uh performance spaces, community rooms. Just a few things are going to uh open up on that weekend.

The Learning And Engagement Hub

Speaker 1:14

Just a few things. Beyond what is it, 100,000 new square feet, something along those lines? Besides beyond new space, what is changing for the visitor experience?

Speaker 1 1:25

Beyond the new space. That's a big, that's a big one, too. Yeah, it's it's it's doubling the size of the museum as well as the museum experience. I am a part of our learning and engagement team. And one of the things that you you'll actually you can see right now, because we just put the signs up, but one of the things that the guests will see is a big sign that points to the learning and engagement hub. And so on top of all the gallery space and art, you know, and and art that's going on view, we have a really large expanded wing where we have uh five new studio spaces, including a ceramic studio, a community room, uh, a lounge space uh where people can come anytime, and then uh a large room where we can do performances, talks, more gallery space for our community to also display art. So there's also going to be a lot more engagement that opens up after the six, seven weekend.

Speaker 2:31

So when people enter the enter the news space for the first time, outside of these new these new learning experiences, what are you most excited about? What do you think they'll feel as they walk into this new space?

Access Means More Than Free

Speaker 1 2:47

It's hard to say, you know, pick the priorities. So I will say the first thing that people will see when they walk into the new learning and engagement hub is a community lounge. So that was really thoughtful to be that first stop for guests who are coming in because one, we just walked through a large part of the collection and the museum. So you might need a break, you might need a place to sit down and rest. But we also have games, we have art making, we have a lot of different activities set out for people to just lounge and linger in that space. So one, I'm excited about the tone that's gonna set for the rest of their experience when they walk through the hub, because after that, you're gonna get into art making, you're gonna get into, you know, more engagement. But I think it's also gonna provide just another layer of welcome for our guests too, to feel like they really do belong in this space.

Speaker 3:50

Wow. So that's one of the things that is just so special uh with Crystal Bridges is that access is always centered in the mission of Crystal Bridges. Uh, why is that important to keep that access so centered and and and welcome new people into this new space?

Designing Art Making For Everyone

Speaker 1 4:08

Yeah, well, Crystal Bridges, you know, is free. And a lot of people still don't know that, but the museum itself is free, the uh permanent collection is free. Um, even walking into the learning engagement hub is free. So there's a generous amount of just access into the space that is baked into the identity and the mission of Crystal Bridges. You know, our founder, Alice Walton, was very uh, very much wanting to ensure that the museum itself is as welcoming and open as possible to our audiences. But I also want to note that access extends beyond just being free and open to people. When we also will have things like art making and different drop-in experiences, we're designing those things to also be appealing for people who might not see themselves as an artist, or you know, this might be their first museum visit. So the way in which also engagements and programs are designed in this space expand on the access uh for people when they come to them.

Speaker 5:18

Yeah. So do you think this more hands-on art making approach does that help bring people along that might not identify themselves as an art person? Like you you talk about this access, like you're right. Like if it still feels like I don't belong there, it's not accessible to me.

Speaker 1 5:37

Right, right. For those that don't see themselves as an art person, that's exactly who we're designing these things for. Um, one of the things I love about working with, because I work with a very large team here at the museum who creates all of the art making and family experiences and different, you know, drop-in activities, is they do such a great job of thinking about designing something for that person in your family or in your friend group of like they've never touched a paintbrush, or you know, they don't see themselves as the typical museum goer. Um, and the art making, the engagements are typically really fun, really open because we want to, we want to shift that. We want when people, especially walk into our doors, you know, get a sense of wow, I can be an artist, or I don't have to know, you know, this and that to feel like I can engage or belong in that space. Um, so it's important both in the way in the museum's design, but the way in which our programs are also continued to be designed.

What To Expect June 6-7

Speaker 6:48

That is lovely. So if if I'm planning to come for this six, seven weekend, what should I expect? What's it gonna feel like this celebration?

Speaker 1 6:57

It's gonna be big. And so we have it's a it's a two-day celebration, but it's also hopefully it's gonna be the beginning too of your like one of many different visits back to the museum. There's a couple things that I'd highlight. The first being because we are an art museum, we're gonna have some artists from our collection present that weekend, um, who will be making art with our guests, with you, hopefully you could become. Artist Bobby C. Martin is gonna be present. He's gonna be uh playing screen prints uh with people for the day. Uh Roberto Lugo, who is a ceramicist, he's gonna be on. So we have a bike-powered pottery wheel that Nargo biked, helped make with us. Yeah, it's really cool. We've pulled it out once. We're gonna pull it out again and we're gonna put it on our walker landing space. And Roberto is gonna be on that bike-powered pottery wheel, spinning pots with our guests. Um, so when you get to meet these artists and create with them. Um, and then artist Linda Lopez uh is also gonna be present uh making some large ceramic uh sculptures with people in the hub. So I think, you know, getting a chance to engage and create alongside the artists is something that's gonna be really, really special. Um, we also have Jazz at Lincoln Center, uh, not the only performance, but one of the performances that will happen is the musicians, uh part of Jazz at Lincoln Center, are going to be there that day to perform in front of artworks in the galleries, and then also have a culminating performance in our new Commons, which is our you know new um larger space for talks and performances in the learning engagement hub. Um so it's one of the few times you get to also come and see them perform here at the museum.

Speaker 8:50

So this this does not sound like a quick visit. Uh you think, yeah, you think it's uh something that we should plan a long weekend for?

A Museum Visit That Feels Restorative

Speaker 1 9:00

Yeah, so you if you don't have a lot of time, you still you can still always come to the museum and have a great time, even if it is a quick visit. But because of so many, and I've only scratched the surface of you know the things that we're going to be offering that day, because we have so many things that are going on. I would plan to stay a while. And honestly, anytime you visit Crystal Bridges, it's always good to, you know, plan to settle in, stay a while, get hear a talk, watch a performance, grab some food. We have some new spaces also opening up or new quartz and honey. restaurant is also opening up. Yeah, so you can really make it a day.

Speaker 9:41

You know, one of the things I'm so fortunate to to have raised my kids in Bentonville, Arkansas. And I remember taking uh a family trip to Crystal Bridges. I say a family trip, it was an after Sunday after, you know, some afternoon. U But I remember my daughter who was probably seven, eight at the time, you know, she got she got a little fatigued. And so she was able to just walk out and like look at tadpoles in in the pond, you know. And my son was able to sit there and and and read all of the little synopses on the on the walls of the art that he was interested in. And that was what struck me. Like I love an art museum in a big city, right? But I've done that ex same experience with this family in a big city and the fatigue sets in where you can't walk anymore and you can't stare at anything anymore, and you're n you know, you're just worn out. I don't think I've ever experienced that at Crystal Bridges. It is it is regenerative and restorative because of what you guys have thought through from uh where there's a place to rest and and recharge, the the flow into and out of nature. Um I think people, especially if it's their first time, might not understand how just how much there is to do and how um non-taxing it is.

Speaker 1 11:13

Yeah, yeah. And and pictures don't do it justice. That's right. I remember the first time that I visited Crystal Bridges, I had seen pictures of it in advance, but until you come and are physically moving through the space and you see what you just described of like the large glass windows that break down, you know, the the barriers of nature and art. Like you feel like you're still surrounded by the beautiful Ozark landscape outside when you're in the museum. Um, I just you don't realize it until you start moving through the spaces.

Growing Bentonville And A Bigger Destination

Speaker 11:52

Can you talk a little bit more about that? Like Bentonville is growing fast. There's massive investments in um the visitor experience, the resident experience, infrastructure, buildings, all of this. How does this meet that moment?

Speaker 1 12:11

Yeah, and I think it, you know, it's a it's a wonderful time to be opening up um expanded space to meet that growing population. Um, but I also think that not only does it help with providing more footprint for people to, you know, come and visit and enjoy, um, because the spaces are so thoughtfully designed, it provides a destination for a lot of our guests too, when they do come. So we're growing, you know, the opportunities for people to um, as that bill is growing, to make this spot a destination, even if they are local.

Deepening The Art And Nature Connection

Speaker 12:53

And and then let's let's move back just a step to the connection between art, architecture, and nature. How does the next phase, and I'm specifically thinking about some of what I've seen, was I overlook the flyover? Like, how does this next phase deepen that connection between art, architecture, and nature?

Speaker 1 13:13

Yeah, I mentioned, you know, because of the way the building is designed, and there's so much, you know, glass. Um, the whole, you know, Crystal Bridges architecture, architectural experience is designed to blend that experience of art and nature, just physically, you know, being able to see nature as you're moving through the galleries. That's continuing in the new gallery space. I think you know, our guests will find and be able to see some familiar um angles that you know Moshe has designed in uh our current gallery spaces, um, replicated in the new spaces, but they also will see some new things too. Like we have um one of the spots, which I think is going to be the most beautiful spot to sit down, enjoy your lunch, or have a cup of coffee, is right aft at the very end of the learning engagement hub, and then right before you start going down the new corridor towards quartz and honey. So this will all make sense when people start coming. There is this large corner window that is just two big panes of glass coming together, and it overlooks our north lawn area, that space where you've seen the cranes, where you can see, you know, the yeah, the sidewalk to A Street. That is it's it's a breathtaking spot. I was sitting there watching the wind blowing the grass uh the other day, and then watching those tadpoles those like you know, water all the animals. It's it's really surprising to have such a serene spot right at the you know the end of the um of the corridor there.

Speaker 15:07

You know, that softy design experience and influence is so user-focused.

Speaker 1 15:14

Yeah.

Crystal Bridges And The Momentary Together

Speaker 15:14

You know, extremely, extremely special. All right, so Crystal Bridges and the Momentary. I wanna it's not two totally distinct hats that you wear, but you do wear two hats. Um as uh as the footprint grows and the programming grows, does the way that you work together with the momentary change or grow in any way?

Speaker 1 15:37

It's always growing. And I think you know, the momentary is a is a distinct space, but uh, you know, one of the things that I don't believe many people know is the team, the same team that creates and works at the Crystal Bridges is also the same team that creates and works at the momentary. So we do a really good job of being able to create experiences across both spaces that still help to keep the unique identity of both institutions. But because we know the excitement's gonna grow over at Crystal Bridges, we hope that that also helps to continue to boost the excitement and growth over at the momentary. And over the summer, we've got new exhibitions about to open there too. Lucy Sparrow is opening up in July with a really cool um immersive exhibition of felt, felt creations.

Speaker 16:33

Well, I can tell you that my my oldest child tells me just about every uh every other day about a band or something that's happening at Momentary. So it really is uh such a wonderful asset to people of all ages, right? Uh Crystal Bridges and the Momentary, whether you live here or you're visiting, there's something to do for everybody.

Speaker 1 16:55

Yeah, absolutely.

First-Time Takeaway And Closing Invite

Speaker 16:56

Last thing, uh, if it's the first time for somebody to come to Crystal Bridges, um somehow they have not been here over the last 15-ish years, uh what do you want them to leave thinking?

Speaker 1 17:13

That they want to come back. I think that is something that if we because of providing all of these really cool, unique, you know, fun activities, engagements, all the new artworks, all the new, you know, ways to connect with art and artists, what we would hope is that people understand that this is not just inherent to an opening weekend. We provide all of these types of engagements and opportunities throughout the entire year. I really would hope that they want to continue. This would be the first visit of many repeat visits coming back. And coming to also take some classes in our new studio spaces um and see, you know, engage in something that they might not have thought they wanted to or could previously.

Speaker 18:14

Well, I tell you what, if you haven't made the trip, um six, seven weekends is a be here moment for everybody. Uh, new guests, return guests, community members. It's gonna be a big one. It's gonna be a big one. Thank you for for hosting it. And we're excited to be experiencing this alongside of you and grateful for it. Is there anything we'd like our listeners, anything else we'd like our listeners to know about this weekend?

Speaker 1 18:41

I will be there personally too. So I hope, you know, to to see to see you and to see them as many as we can. Um it's gonna be it's gonna be a very exciting, very exciting weekend.

Speaker 18:55

No doubt. Well, Mora, thank you so much for joining us.

Speaker 1 18:58

Thank you, Graham. All righty.

Speaker 19:00

Ready to explore Bentonville? Check out visitbentville.com for dining guides, event calendars, and trip planning tools. Follow us on social media and subscribe to our newsletter. Links are in the show notes. Thanks for listening to a new American town.