Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art on Friday announced it had acquired several major artworks, including a painting by James McNeill Whistler and a special commission to Maya Lin, the designer of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington.
The Lin artwork, “Silver Upper White River,” debuted on Friday in the north gallery bridge of the Bentonville museum. It’s a wall-mounted sculpture, made from recycled silver and visible from the museum’s restaurant, Eleven. The sculpture overlooks the Crystal Bridges pond system, which feeds into the White River watershed, the museum noted.
“The acquisitions represent a kaleidoscope of artistic excellence from the 19th century to today,” the museum’s executive director, Rod Bigelow, said in a statement. “They diversify our collection, broaden our understanding of the American experience, and help foster important conversations among our visitors and community.”
The works, in addition to the Lin sculpture, are:
• “The Chelsea Girl,” 1884 (oil on canvas), by James NcNeill Whistler.
• “Archbishop James Frederick Wood,” 1877 (oil on canvas), by Thomas Eakins.
• “Florida Mexicana,” 1936, (oil on canvas), by Alfredo Ramos Martínez.
• “What We Want, What We Need,” 2014 (found punching bag, glass beads, artificial sinew, copper jingles, nylon fringe, and steel chain), by Jeffrey Gibson.
The prices of the works weren’t disclosed, but they’re undoubtedly worth millions of dollars. Crystal Bridges reportedly paid $20 million in 2007 for Eakins’ “Portrait of Professor Benjamin H. Rand.”
The works are interesting in that they represent a diverse range of artists and media. Gibson, for example, is Native American, and Lin is Chinese American.
“Spanning three centuries, these artists uniquely contribute to the rich story of American art and help shape the fabric of our national identity,” Director of Curatorial Affairs Margi Conrads said.
“These works add depth to the stories of well-known artists already represented in the collection and broaden our perspective with artists who are perhaps less well known. The diversity in time periods, favored materials, and experiences of the artists represented in these new acquisitions underscore our effort to introduce a new dialog with the viewer and keep our galleries dynamic.”
Arkansas Business reported in August on Conrads, who joined Crystal Bridges in March, who said the museum was “at the cusp of a really exciting moment” as it works on its collection development plan.
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