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Guests viewing artwork in a salon hang.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will be closed Monday, May 13, to prepare for the visit of Antiques Roadshow. We will return to normal hours of operation Wednesday, May 15.
Travels with State of the Art: Cobi Moules in the Great American Landscape
Cobi Moules, Untitled (La Verkin Creek)

Travels with State of the Art: Cobi Moules in the Great American Landscape

Art & Collection Exhibitions

Nature has had many different symbolic meanings over time.  From the embodiment of threatening, unfettered savagery to the pure manifestation of the glory of God, landscape has played many roles…

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Ease Disease, there’s a Fungus among us!!
The inside of a hollowed out tree trunk

Ease Disease, there’s a Fungus among us!!

Nature & Outdoor
One way that nature decomposes an old fallen tree or dead wood is through decay caused by fungus. Fungus not only breaks down logs lying in the woods back into…
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Observing the Hidden Gems of Winter
Barred Owl

Observing the Hidden Gems of Winter

Nature & Outdoor

Winter is a time for observations in nature. The architecture of an Ozark hardwood forest, the silence of the woods after freshly fallen snow, and the intricacies of persimmon bark…

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What is Blackwell’s Island?
History image of Blackwell's Island

What is Blackwell’s Island?

Art & Collection

What is Blackwell’s Island? An oil painting by Edward Hopper? Yes, but where and what is the actual Blackwell’s Island? Why did Hopper choose to paint it? These are questions…

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Garden Warfare: The Praying Mantid Approach
Chinese Mantid insect

Garden Warfare: The Praying Mantid Approach

Nature & Outdoor
As we begin the lengthy process of cutting back our perennials and grasses, I am always on the lookout for some free biological control.  Praying mantid egg-casings, known as oothecae,…
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Crystal Bridges Acquires Frank Lloyd Wright House
Frank Lloyd Wright Bachman-Wilson House exterior

Crystal Bridges Acquires Frank Lloyd Wright House

Architecture Art & Collection Nature & Outdoor

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has acquired a rare Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian house, known as the Bachman-Wilson House, located in the Borough of Millstone in Somerset County, N.J.…

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Duane Hanson’s “Man on a Bench” Perplexes the Masses
School kids look at sculpture of man sitting on a bench

Duane Hanson’s “Man on a Bench” Perplexes the Masses

Art & Collection
While seated in a gallery reflection area during her break, Museum Security Patrol Officer Janet overheard a somewhat panicked voice. “Sir,” the voice inquired. “Sir, are you okay?” Janet turned…
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Robert Henri’s Clean Slate
Robert Henri

Robert Henri’s Clean Slate

Art & Collection
Robert Henri, born Robert Henry Cozad, had a fairly ordinary childhood. His father, John Jackson Cozad, was a professional gambler turned real estate promoter; his mother, Theresa Gatewood Cozad, was…
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"Time" and the New Year
Detail of a older man's hand holding an analog wall clock

"Time" and the New Year

Art & Collection
Perhaps it’s a cliché to illustrate the dawning of a new year with a painting titled “Time.” But Max Ferguson’s gorgeously detailed work is so evocative, I just couldn’t resist.…
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What’s in a Name? A Look at our Native Orchid Species
Rattlesnake Plantain plant

What’s in a Name? A Look at our Native Orchid Species

Nature & Outdoor
Our living collection at Crystal Bridges is a diverse one.  It includes 91 species and cultivars of native trees, 54 species and cultivars of native shrubs, and 187 species and…
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“I Don’t Get It”— Getting comfortable with some of Crystal Bridges’ challenging artworks: Lynda Benglis's "Eat Meat"
Visitors look at a metal sculpture on the floor

“I Don’t Get It”— Getting comfortable with some of Crystal Bridges’ challenging artworks: Lynda Benglis's "Eat Meat"

Art & Collection

Of all the works in Crystal Bridges collection that cause guests to scratch their heads in bewilderment, Lynda Benglis’s Eat Meat has to be at the top of the list. …

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'Tis the Season: Winter Break Art Project
Circle shaped buttons in white, blues, and grays and some snowflake shaped white buttons

'Tis the Season: Winter Break Art Project

Activities & Education At the Museum

Night Zag Wall showcases the awe of combining found objects with an artistic hand. The layering of organic and geometric shapes turn this wall sculpture into a conversational piece. Home…

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The Lady Gets a Makeover
William Wetmore Story,

The Lady Gets a Makeover

Art & Collection Nature & Outdoor
To me, one of the most fascinating careers in the art world is conservation: a profession devoted to the preservation of our tangible cultural heritage. Conservators have the very important…
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Celebrating Holiday Illustrations
The Illuminated Christian Year

Celebrating Holiday Illustrations

Library

I am often surprised to run across lovely illustrations of the holiday season in books and other Crystal Bridges’ library materials.  On the other hand, it really isn’t that unusual…

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What I Learned From Crystal Bridges Gallery Guides
Guide leads a family on a tour of the museum

What I Learned From Crystal Bridges Gallery Guides

At the Museum Volunteer Spotlight

Assessment can be an unpleasant word.  A simple online search reveals synonyms such as evaluation, judgment, rating, and analysis.  Sounds painful…  Perhaps hearing the word brings back nightmares of pop…

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Restoring an Original
Conservator working on frame for artwork

Restoring an Original

Art & Collection Nature & Outdoor
Thomas Eakins’s Professor Benjamin Howard Rand is a centerpiece of Crystal Bridges' Late Nineteenth Century Art Gallery.  Its large, beautiful, and ornate frame is often noticed and remarked upon by…
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Frame-Up
Framed painting of group of women dressed as clowns hang gold-hued lanterns, which glow against the blue night sky

Frame-Up

Art & Collection
The frames on many of the works of art in Crystal Bridges' collection are of as much interest to visitors as the artworks themselves. Gallery Guides are frequently asked where…
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Discoveries in the Stieglitz Collection: Part II
Diego Rivera, Le sucrier et les bougies (Sugar Bowl and Candles)

Discoveries in the Stieglitz Collection: Part II

Art & Collection Exhibitions
Time-traveling sculpture Further research on one of the sculptures in the Alfred Stieglitz Collection revealed that the work’s recorded date of 1930 was incorrect: it turned out the artwork was…
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Fright at the Museum: Teens create their own programming
A woman lays on the floor dressed as the same woman laying down in a artwork hanging on the wall above

Fright at the Museum: Teens create their own programming

Teens

Earlier, we introduced readers to Crystal Bridges Teen Council and took a look at the special audio tour this group of creative, energetic teens has created.  Today’s blog looks at…

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Creative Connections: Art and Alzheimer’s
Woman shows off the art she made

Creative Connections: Art and Alzheimer’s

Activities & Education At the Museum

Crystal Bridges’ Creative Connections: Art and Alzheimer’s Program piloted in January, 2013 as a collaboration between Crystal Bridges and the Northwest Arkansas/Bentonville office of the Alzheimer’s Association.  During monthly two-hour…

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