Jun 16, 2014 Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has a full month of summer arts and cultural events including lectures, tours, classes, and inspiring outdoor activities. Visitors are invited to a lecture on July 2 by one of the most prominent American architecture photographers, Timothy Hursley, whose photography includes the architecture of Moshie Safdie, highlighted in the recently opened exhibition Global Citizen: The Architecture of Moshe Safdie. The last day to visit The William S. Paley Collection: A Taste for Modernism is July 7. Visitors are encouraged to see it before it returns to The Museum of Modern Art in New York. On July 11, artist Jeff Koons will discuss his stainless steel sculpture Hanging Heart (Gold/Magenta) which is on display in the Museum’s restaurant, Eleven. Wrap up the month July 30 at Walker Landing for an Open Mic Night, Freedom of Speech with hosts:World Poetry Slam finalist Houston Hughes and musician John Henry. A full listing of July programs is below. Information and registration are also available on the calendar of events on Crystal Bridges’ website: https://crystalbridges.org/events/. Sign up for Crystal Bridges email updates at ENewsletter. July Public Programs Wednesday, July 2, 7 to 8 pm Architecture Speaker Series | Road Tripping with American Architecture Photographer, Timothy Hursley Timothy Hursley is one of the foremost architectural photographers in America. His portfolio includes images of buildings by Frank Gehry, Moshe Safdie, and I.M. Pei. These photos aim to understand and render visible the architect’s intent: the play of light on a cornice, the shadows of a sunset on a facade. Yet if Hursley’s work is subtle, it’s also essential. For many people, the only way they will ever view some of these architectural wonders—most of which are scattered far apart across America and the world—is in a Hursley photo. In other words, when you look at a piece of art by one of America’s famed architects, you are often, unknowingly, also looking at a work of art by Timothy Hursley. $10 (Free for Members), register onlineor by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Friday, July 4, 7:30 to 9 pm First Friday Concert | La Calle Soul Band Celebrate Independence Day with the vibrant Latin-American beats of La Calle Soul! Bring your picnic blanket to enjoy the concert and dancing on the Museum’s South Lawn. A cash bar will be available. Afterward, head to Orchards Park for the Fourth of July fireworks. Free, no registration required. Monday, July 7, 9 to 11 am Member’s Last Look | The William S. Paley Collection: A Taste for Modernism Crystal Bridges Members are invited for a special Members-only final viewing of this temporary exhibition from The Museum of Modern Art. Crystal Bridges is the final venue for this extraordinary collection before it returns to New York. Free, no registration required. Monday, July 7, 11 am to 12:30 pm Journaling Group | Concerning the Spiritual in Art Spend the summer freeing your voice through the inspirational writings of Wassily Kandinsky—known as the father of abstract art. Based on Kandinsky’s book, Concerning the Spiritual in Art, express your own personal thoughts in writing about the modern art masters in The William S. Paley Collection and the Museum’s permanent collection. Please bring paper and pencil for writing in the galleries. Free with online registration. Monday, July 7, 1 to 3 pm Figure Drawing Join us on the first and third Mondays each month to draw from a clothed model. Whether you’ve always had a love for figure drawing or are trying it for the first time, you’ll enjoy an afternoon drawing with others at the Museum. A variety of drawing materials will be provided, and model poses will include both shorter warm-up poses, and longer poses. $10 (Free for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Monday, July 7, 1:30 to 2:30 pm The Great Reveal | Rare Books on Architectural Design What styles of architecture and ornamental detail did nineteenth-century Americans appreciate? Explore some of the first American architectural color-plate books with Library Director Catherine Petersen. Discover the exterior and interior architectural design trends of historical periods as well as popular residential styles. From elaborate perspective drawings of American revival styles to detailed renderings and color-plates of various house paint combinations, you will enjoy learning about the architectural styles of our forefathers. Among the selections are Modern House Painting Designs, by John Lucas & Co. 1887. Moore’s House Colors, 1885, and Sloan’s Constructive Architecture; a Guide to the Practical Builder and Mechanic. in Which is Contained a Series of Designs for Domes, Roofs and Spires, with a Number of Plates Showing the Interior Construction and Finish of Bays, Window Shutters,1859. The Great Reveal is sponsored by John and Emily Douglas. Free with online registration. Wednesday, July 9, 6:30 to 8 pm Boundless Book Club | Stop-Time: A Memoir by Frank Conroy Known in the literary world as one of the best memoirs ever written, Frank Conroy’s Stop-Time: A Memoir takes readers through a sad but beautiful tale of death, first love, and lost friendships. A former director of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa for 18 years and a past director of the literature program at the National Endowment for the Arts, Conroy was a leading literary figure until his death in 2005. Join Crystal Bridges Librarian Elizabeth Bradshaw to discuss this novel of the human experience. Free with online registration. Wednesday, July 9, 7 to 8:30 pm Art Out Loud | Freedom in Verse Come celebrate America’s rich history of verse and performance by experiencing it up close and in person! World Poetry Slam finalist Houston Hughes will speak on the use of poetry as an expression of freedom and American identity. Assisting him will be a number of local poets who will perform historical American verses indicative of this theme. The talk will conclude with a live, audience-judged poetry competition featuring local poets performing their own works on the topics of identity, freedom, and diversity in America. Free with online registration. Friday, July 11, 5:30 to 6:30 pm Member Meet & Greet with Guest Speaker Jeff Koons By invitation only. Friday, July 11, 7 to 8 pm Keynote Lecture | Artist Jeff Koons Meet internationally recognized artist Jeff Koons, whose stainless steel sculpture Hanging Heart (Gold/Magenta) is on view in the Museum’s restaurant, Eleven. His ironically monumental reimaginings of everyday subjects such as inflatable toys, and his appropriations of commercial imagery have been exhibited worldwide. A book signing by the artist will follow the lecture. Sponsored by Del Monte Foods, Inc. $15 ($12 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Saturday, July 12, 9 to 10:30 am Discover the Grounds| The Sun’s Ecosystem Explore the daytime ecosystem of the Skyspace Wildflower Meadow that is filled with sunlight, native wildflowers, and fascinating insects. Horticulturist Cody George will showcase wildflower selections that support a healthy ecology suited for heavy sunlight in the summer heat. Afterward, explore the meadow to uncover the secrets of the ecosystem in a guided trail tour and pick a few flowers to make sun prints, Meet at the Skyspace, accessible via the paved Art Trail which includes a medium incline. Sponsored by The Coleman Company. Free with online registration. Saturday, July 12, 10 to 11 a.m. Yoga and Art Yoga takes over the Early Twentieth-Century Art Gallery: a peaceful setting with views of the North Lawn. Yoga Story’s Cindee Joslin leads this uplifting group experience uniting the power of art with the beauty of the nature. Participants should bring their own yoga mat and dress appropriately. $5 (Free for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Saturday, July 12, 1 pm Art Talk | Speak the Language of Sculpture! Look at sculpture through the eyes of local sculptor Nicole Howard. Discuss with Howard how to assess differences between the ordinary and the extraordinary qualities of sculpture. Free, no registration required. Monday, July 14, thru Friday, July 18, 9 am to noon Drama Camp | Creature Feature For ages 6 to 9. Learn how to move, sound, and behave like a creature with the talented Trike Theatre. Travel through the galleries and grounds to find the creatures that you will animate through tableau storytelling. Drama Campers will set the stage with a culminating show-and-share on Friday. Healthy and nut-free snacks, along with materials, are included in camp fee.$150 ($120 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Monday, July 14, thru Friday, July 18, 9 am to noon Drama Camp | American Masterwork Theatre For ages 10 to 12. Do you love a good story? Learn how to make a story come to life with Trike Theatre. Explore our permanent collection to find characters and action to set the stage for dramatic stories. Drama Campers will present a culminating show-and-share on Friday. Healthy and nut-free snacks, along with materials, are included in camp fee. $150 ($120 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Wednesday, July 16, 7:30 pm Performance/Film | The Measure of All Things 2014, 65 minutes, U.S.A., New Frontier Film Acclaimed documentarian Sam Green presents his newest “live documentary” The Measure of All Thingsaccompanied by the Brooklyn-based band, The Quavers. This lecture/performance/film is a playful and poetic meditation on humanity, loosely inspired by the Guinness World Records book… » series. Green interprets our collective fascination with the book of world records as a profound need to try and make some sense of who we are by calibrating human experience and marveling at its outer contours. Green himself travels to various reaches of the earth to collect original footage of record-holding people, places, and things. He weaves into these original portraits a rich assembly of archival footage, his own live narration, and an evocative live soundtrack from The Quavers to create an indelible rumination on fate, human endeavor, and the nature of our existence on Earth. The Measure of All Things is an official selection at Sundance in 2014. $7.50 ($6 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Thursday, July 17, 1 pm Art Talk | Bringing Portraiture to Life Hear Academy Award nominee Sam Green discuss his favorite work of art at Crystal Bridges, and learn how he would bring this artwork to life through live documentary. Free, no registration required. Friday, July 18, 7 to 8:30 pm Illustrated Lecture| Sam Green: The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller Learn about the core inspiration for the Museum’s geodesic sculpture, Buckyball, by Leo Villareal, through an illustrated lecture on The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller, presented by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sam Green, who produced the live documentary for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Learn more about the project here. $5 (Free for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Saturday, July 19, noon to 3 pm Drop-In Art Making | Textured Flowers Exercise your creativity! Drop in anytime for a free, guided studio session. Roses are red and violets are blue, but most of all make fun flowers for you! Try the rough surface of sandpaper to make your flower drawings uniquely original. Materials are provided and all ages are welcome! Free, no registration required. Sunday, July 20, 1 to 4 pm Drop-In Drawing Drop in anytime for a free, informal drawing session. Materials are provided and an art instructor will be on hand to get you started. Check at Guest Services for the specific location. All ages are welcome! Free, no registration required. Monday, July 21, 1 to 3 pm Figure Drawing Join us on the first and third Mondays each month to draw from a clothed model. Whether you’ve always had a love for figure drawing or are trying it for the first time, you’ll enjoy an afternoon drawing with others at the Museum. A variety of drawing materials will be provided, and model poses will include both shorter warm-up poses, and longer poses. $10 (Free for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Wednesday, July 23, 5 to 7 pm Artinfusion @ Culture Hour Artinfusion Members and guests are invited to come together on the fourth Wednesday of each month to meet and mingle during Culture Hour in Eleven. Enjoy great company and special $5 drinks and appetizers. We’ll reserve a seating area for artinfusion Members and their guests from 5 to 7 p.m. Special pricing on drinks and appetizers will be extended for artinfusion Members (with proof of membership) until 9 p.m.! Artinfusion is sponsored by Blue Moon Brewing Company. Wednesday, July 23, 7 pm, Bellows & Cassatt Artinfusion Art Talk: Collecting for Beginners Artinfusion Members are invited to join Crystal Bridges Assistant Curator Chad Alligood for an art talk on collecting for beginners…on a budget. Chad will share the inside scoop on the who, what, why, and how’s of creating a dynamic art collection without breaking the bank. Before the art talk, join us for our first artinfusion @ Culture Hour in Eleven beginning at 5 pm for a beverage and nosh. Free, no registration required. Artinfusion is especially for Members ages 21-40. Wednesday, July 23, 6 to 7 pm WOW | Wednesday Over Water Join Crystal Bridges Culinary Director Case Dighero at these monthly tasting experiences to sample selections of drinks and hors d’oeuvres from Eleven, inspired by a Crystal Bridges’ collection and temporary exhibitions. Open to guests ages 21 and above. Sponsored by Premier Dermatology. $30 ($24 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Friday, July 25, 7 to 8:30 pm Photo Salon | Featuring Kat Wilson on the art of food photography Join Crystal Bridges’ Photo Salon to learn how to address the unique challenges of food photography with master photographer Kat Wilson. $10 (Free for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Friday, July 25, 8:30 to 10:30 pm Outdoor Film | SciFi Screening at the Buckyball, Featuring Contact Transport yourself into the world of science fiction at the Buckyball with an outdoor screening of Contact, starring Jodie Foster. Feel free to bring picnic blankets. A cash bar will be available. Sponsored by Demara Titzer. Free, no registration required. Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 12 to 4 pm Weekend Workshop | Poetry: Page to Stage Modern spoken-word poetry is uniquely American in its roots; born in Chicago, it has now spread across the world. This two-day workshop, led by World Poetry Slam finalist Houston Hughes along with special guest Doug Shields, will begin with a brief introduction to the history and form of American spoken-word poetry. Next, you will focus on the task of creating and critiquing original work. By the end of the workshop, every participant will have created at least one spoken-word poem of their own, ready to perform. Sponsored by Demara Titzer. $50 ($40 for Members), register online or by calling Guest Services at 479.657.2335. Wednesday, July 30, 7 pm Summer Family Time | StoneLion Puppet Theatre presents It’s a Jungle Out There! Spend a cool family night in Crystal Bridges Great Hall enjoying a magical marionette performance by family audience favorite StoneLion Puppet Theatre. Meet dozens of endangered species and other wildlife from around the globe in this cabaret musical extravaganza! Free, no registration required. Wednesday July 30, 6 to 7 pm Open Mic Night | Freedom of Speech Come out to Walker Landing and take the stage to show off your singing, musicianship, poetry, or whatever talent you have that speaks to the theme of Freedom. The night will be hosted by World Poetry Slam finalist Houston Hughes, assisted by musician John Henry. Sign-up is open to the public, with special preference given to those who participated in the Page to Stage poetry workshop the previous weekend. Free with online registration. Wednesday, July 30, Sunset Skyspace Discussion Enjoy a facilitated discussion of James Turrell’s Skyspace The Way of Color, led by a Museum Guide. Free, no registration required. Seating is first-come, first-served. About Crystal Bridges 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. We explore the unfolding story of America by actively collecting, exhibiting, interpreting, and preserving outstanding works that illuminate our heritage and artistic possibilities. Opened to the public on 11-11-11, Crystal Bridges was founded in 2005 by the Walton Family Foundation as a nonprofit charitable organization for all to enjoy. Philanthropist and arts patron Alice Walton chairs the Museum’s board of directors. Since its opening, the Museum has welcomed nearly 1.3 million visitors, and garnered more than 7,900 households in its membership. Some 39,000 school children have participated in the Museum’s Willard and Pat Walker School Visit program, which provides educational experiences for school groups at no cost to the schools. More than 220,000 visitors a year utilize the Museum’s 3.5 miles of walking trails. Crystal Bridges takes its name from a nearby natural spring and the bridge construction incorporated in the building, designed by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie. A series of pavilions nestled around two spring-fed ponds house galleries, meeting and classroom spaces, and a large, glass-enclosed gathering hall. Guest amenities include a restaurant on a glass-enclosed bridge overlooking the ponds, a Museum Store designed by architect Marlon Blackwell, and a library featuring more than 50,000 volumes of art reference material. Sculpture and walking trails link the Museum’s 120-acre park to downtown Bentonville, Arkansas. Crystal Bridges’ permanent collection spans five centuries of American masterworks ranging from the Colonial era to the current day. Included within the collection are iconic images such as Asher B. Durand’s Kindred Spirits, Norman Rockwell’s Rosie the Riveter, and Andy Warhol’s Coca-Cola [3]— each reflecting a distinct moment in American artistic evolution—as well as major works by modern and contemporary American artists, including Georgia O’Keeffe, John Baldessari, and James Turrell. The permanent collection, which continues to grow through a strategic acquisition plan, is on view year-round and is enhanced by an array of temporary exhibitions, which were viewed by some 216,000 visitors in 2013. Crystal Bridges provides year-round programming for all ages. In 2013, more than 300 public programs were offered, including lectures, performances, classes, and continuing education for K-12 teachers. An award-winning app, available free for both Apple and Android devices, features audio tours of current and past exhibitions, and many of the Museum’s lectures and gallery talks are available in Crystal Bridges’ iTunes U site. A new initiative to develop high-quality distance-learning opportunities for students and teachers begins this year. Crystal Bridges also offers two research fellowship programs. The Tyson Scholars in American Art program supports full-time scholarship in the history of American art. The Reese Teacher Fellowship provides for research into the development of interdisciplinary connections between American art and core curriculum subjects of language arts, history, social studies, and the sciences. Additional information about Crystal Bridges is available online at CrystalBridges.org.
