ARTS & CULTURE
Text and photos courtesy of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Crystal Bridges Marks 12-Year Anniversary with Annie Leibovitz and an Ambitious Expansion on the Horizon
For 12 years, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has played a critical role in ushering in a new era for America’s Heartland. Beyond bringing access to some of the best art in the world to this part of the country, Crystal Bridges also sparks curiosity and enthusiasm that inspires creativity, excitement and entrepreneurship for a new generation.
If Crystal Bridges had a superpower, it would be inclusive storytelling. The museum offers a platform for underrepresented voices to tell a fuller story of American history through art. Whether it be photography, craft, visual art or the stunning outdoors, it’s all happening in a setting that unites the power of art with the beauty of nature.
This year, the institution marks its 12th anniversary by celebrating the power of photography with Annie Leibovitz at Work, the legendary photographer’s major exhibition that opened this fall. Annie Leibovitz chronicles popular culture like few other artists. She tells
stories about who we are as a society through portraits of the influential people of our time. The beauty of her storytelling has encouraged CrystalBridges to explore the impact of photography in both art and life. Inspired by Leibovitz’s amazing additions to the collection, the institution will explore the myriad ways that other lens-based artists — including Kristine Potter and Awol Erizku who have exhibitions coming to the Momentary in 2024 — use this medium in all its forms to express their own unique perspectives on the worlds we all inhabit, whether separately or together.
In just 12 years, the organization has welcomed more than 10 million visitors. It’s in the midst of a 100,000-square-foot expansion that will nearly double its footprint and create even more space for galleries, educational programming and community engagement. Crystal Bridges has made a commitment to bring every fifth grader in the state through its doors — a new, creative right-of-passage for every Arkansas child.
Annie Leibovitz
Crystal Bridges isn’t just a museum. It’s a classroom. It’s a sanctuary. And it’s here in the Heartland because great American art belongs to everyone. Here’s how you can be part of the magic this fall:
Listening Forest by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer
Aug. 30 – Dec. 31
Back for its third and final season, Listening Forest combines light, sound and technical marvels to create an immersive world waiting for its final piece: you. The forest’s eight interactive installations, each designed by artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, invite visitors to play with tools built for surveillance and transform them into instruments of connection.
Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Listening Forest, "Summon", 2022, Bentonville, Arkansas /
United States, Photo by Stephen Ironside
Annie Leibovitz at Work
Sept. 16 – Jan. 29, 2024
Experience Annie Leibovitz at Work, a new exhibition of portraits by the famed photographer. In addition to her iconic and daring pictures for magazines like Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair and Vogue, the show includes a set of new works Leibovitz made just for Crystal Bridges — her first museum commission.
Takaezu & Tawney: An Artist is a Poet
Oct. 14 – March 25, 2024
Takaezu & Tawney: An Artist is a Poet debuts 12 new acquisitions to the Crystal Bridges collection that tell the story of a remarkable friendship between the two artists. Curated by Windgate Curator of Craft Jen Padgett, the exhibition highlights how Toshiko Takaezu and Lenore Tawney shaped craft history in the United States by expanding and redefining the possibilities of their preferred mediums: Takaezu in ceramics, Tawney in weaving.
For more information, visit crystalbridges.org.
Annie Leibovitz, Bruce Springsteen on tour, Paris, 2016. Photo courtesy of the artist
© Annie Leibovitz
