It’s the most wonderful time of the year as everyone runs around getting ready for the holidays. Between November and December, Crystal Bridges is no exception. We have so many exciting events and fun things to do for adults and kids of all ages coming in to Bentonville for the holiday season. Whether you’re looking for a way to entertain your family during the school break or thinking about something fun to do with your visiting relatives, here’s what you can expect at Crystal Bridges this holiday season.

For visitors with families, scroll down to find specific tips and events fit to entertain your kids and create great family memories during the holidays. For our members, scroll down to find events that are exclusive to museum members this holiday season.

The museum is open throughout the holidays, early closing on Christmas Eve

Crystal Bridges will have an early closure on Christmas Eve (Monday, December 24, 2 p.m.) and will be closed on Christmas Day (December 25), which is a Tuesday (the day the museum is always closed). On all other days, the museum will be open at its regularly scheduled times:

Monday – 11 am to 2 pm
Tuesday – CLOSED
Wednesday to Friday – 11 am to 9 pm
Saturday and Sunday – 10 am to 6 pm

Warm up with wine in our Art by the Glass events

It’s chilly outside! If you’re looking for a fun activity to do with friends or a date, our Art by the Glass events pair wine and appetizers with an artmaking activity. We have two upcoming Art by the Glass events this holiday season:

» Decorative Bowls
Friday, November 30, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Inspired by the focused exhibition Personal Space, you’ll use a variety of stencils and paint to create your own decorative bowl to take home and enjoy.

» Hand Lettering Card Workshop
Friday, December 14, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Learn the basics of hand lettering, creating your own cards to take home and send to loved ones.

Tickets are $55 ($44 for members) and include all art materials, appetizers, and two glasses of wine. Open to ages 21 and up. Register online or with Guest Services at 479.657.2335.

Join us for an enchanted evening of piano at this season’s Van Cliburn concert

Experience the legend and legacy of Philip Glass as three world-renowned pianists (Aaron Diehl, Jenny Lin, and Maki Namekawa) perform an all-Glass concert on the exquisite Van Cliburn Steinway piano. Thursday, December 6 at 7 p.m. Get your tickets here, with a special discount for students!

Join us for Culture Hour at Eleven before the show! Make a night of it – enjoy live music and exceptional prices on select food and drinks, including cocktails from 5 to 7 p.m.

Ring in the New Year at the NEW 365 party!

Join us this New Year’s Eve from 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. as the entire museum comes to life with music, dance, art, and performance! From hip-hop to jazz to funk to cover songs, there will be music to fit everyone’s taste, and all the art galleries will be open with even more performances and art activities. The action-packed evening will conclude with an exciting balloon drop at midnight! Complimentary champagne toast, appetizers, and a Crystal Bridges dream pillow provided. Cash bars, food, and beverages will be available in several locations throughout the museum. Get your tickets here! 

Take advantage of evening hours

Seeing the museum after dark is a whole new experience. The galleries illuminate against the Ozark forest and the galleries are painted in a new light. If you prefer to walk through the galleries in a more peaceful setting, our quietest hours are in the evening – we’re open until 9 p.m. Wednesday through Friday! On the trails, sit under the dazzling Buckyball light show as you sip hot cocoa, snap a few photos of the lit-up Frank Lloyd Wright house, or enjoy the heated seating in Skyspace.

Grab a holiday drink at Eleven and the Coffee Bar

No need to stop by Starbucks on your way to Crystal Bridges. Both Eleven and the Coffee Bar serve coffee, tea, and smoothies for you to sip and enjoy during your visit. This holiday season, the Coffee Bar will also be featuring a Gingerbread Latte, created using in-house gingerbread syrup, espresso, and steamed milk.

Events and Tips for Families

• Drop in for Drop-In Artmaking on the weekends
  Drop-In Artmaking runs from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Drop in either day, at any point during that time!
• Experience the children’s piano concert, Melody’s Mostly Musical Day
  Bring your children to an evening of magical piano as Van Cliburn pianist Jenny Lin performs a family concert inspired by her book, Melody’s Mostly Musical Day. Follow a child’s musical day from breakfast to bedtime featuring works from Mozart to Chopin to Gershwin to Chick Corea. This concert for the entire family was developed with Steinway and incorporates live music, props, storytelling and screening of the illustrations for each musical selection. The concert takes place on Wednesday, December 5 and is completely free. Register here to grab a seat!
• Celebrate the New Year as a family at Noon Year’s Eve
  Enjoy the fun of New Year’s Eve without staying up past bedtime! Crystal Bridges will be hosting its fourth annual Noon Year’s Eve party on Monday, December 31 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. All ages are invited to dance, participate in artmaking activities, and watch exciting kid-friendly performances. There will also be a visit from Father Time and a Coca-Cola toast at noon. This event is free to all, no registration required.
• Make family memories at Winter Break Wonders
  Crystal Bridges is collaborating with the Museum of Native American History and the Shiloh Museum to bring Winter Break Wonders to the families of Northwest Arkansas! Families can make memories over school break by coming to the museum for special activities each afternoon, including creative play, puppets, dance, family yoga, beaded mosaics, watercolor painting, snowy slime-making, and more. Winter Break Wonders is completely free to all ages and will take place December 22 through January 4 from 1 to 4 p.m. (and December 24, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.), excluding Tuesdays when the museum is closed.
• Check out Personal Space and grab a mint candy
  Located in the North Exhibition Gallery, Personal Space is a free focus exhibition that asks us to consider what emotions are evoked by the places, people, objects, and symbols depicted within the artworks on view. One of the featured works in this exhibition is called Untitled (Placebo-Landscape-for Roni) (1993) by Felix Gonzalez-Torres. The artwork is a collection of candies spilled on the ground that visitors are welcome to take. This is a big hit with kids, so be sure to bring them by and pick out a piece of candy!

Events and Tips for Members

• Save 20% on holiday shopping during Member Double Discount Days
  During the weekend of Friday, December 14 through Monday, December 17, museum members can experience Member Double Discount Days at the Museum Store and save 20% on all purchases! (Discounts do not apply to Chihuly Studio Editions.)
  On Friday, featured artisan Nancy Freeman McGraw of Just for Pearls, a Little Rock-based handmade pearl jewelry business, will be in the store showcasing some of her pearl jewelry.
  On Saturday, free gift wrapping and custom calligraphy on gift tags will be available for all members from 1 to 4 p.m.!

We look forward to seeing you this holiday season!

Special thanks to our sponsors:
Noon Year’s Eve is sponsored by Coca-Cola and Mark and Diane Simmons.
Winter Break Wonders is sponsored by Nice-Pak Products, Inc.
Personal Space is sponsored by HOWSE.