“In everything we do, ‘access’ is a central theme. We want Crystal Bridges Campus to be inviting for everyone.” – Alice Walton
What does it mean to prioritize access?
At Crystal Bridges, it means many things: free admission, bilingual content, and curators that work hard for our galleries to reflect the diversity of human experience.
It also means that Crystal Bridges consciously removes obstacles that could keep people with disabilities from experiencing art. The mission of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is to welcome all to celebrate the American spirit in a setting that unites the power of art with the beauty of nature.
Whether you find yourself exploring our newly installed Foundations of American Art gallery or wandering the trails and grounds, you will see that our mission of accessibility is intentional and ongoing. Wheelchair-accessible paths are featured across the entire Crystal Bridges campus.
Bridge Day
Inclusion doesn’t stop with a facility designed for mobility. The traditional museum environment can be daunting for anyone, and especially for someone with sensory sensitivities, visual impairment, or auditory impairment.
For this reason, Crystal Bridges welcomes guests that may benefit from a more intentional gallery experience on the second Monday of every month for Bridge Day. On Bridge Day there are extra accommodations for neurodiverse and disabled visitors, including interactive gallery activities, reduced lighting and sounds, sensory friendly bags, and touchable replicas of artwork.
Art Beyond Sight and Sound
At the event “Art Beyond Sight and Sound,” students from the Arkansas School for the Deaf and Blind engaged with the touchable versions of Our Town by Kerry James Marshall, 42nd Street (Times Square) by Theodore Roszak, and A Tight Fix—Bear Hunting, Early Winter by Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait. These replicas allow blind students to feel the way the pieces look, encouraging them to connect with artwork in a way that they never have before.
These complex, layered creations are 3D renderings of paintings in the Crystal Bridges collection. They highlight both physical and narrative elements of the original pieces. Tiny details come together to create an immersive experience: the Our Town replica has a road that feels like asphalt, raised blobs of acrylic, embossed letters, and even grommets on the edge of the canvas like the original. 42nd Street (Times Square) is a piece that includes many words and phrases, so the replica features braille so that blind visitors can also experience “reading” the work as sighted visitors do.
Interested in learning more? Hear from educators and students, plus see these touchable artworks in action here.
Art communicates with viewers in a way that surpasses language, time, region, and ability. A museum experience should be no less universal.
“Everybody deserves access to art. Art is hope, it’s opportunity, it’s education, it’s all of the things we want.” – Alice Walton
Check out our full accessibility guide and plan your visit to Crystal Bridges today. Experience art, in whatever way that looks for you!