Criticism vs. applause
Posted on Sunday, November 4, 2007
BENTONVILLE - There's quite a bit of excitement surrounding the 2009 opening of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. After all, it's not every day that a 100, 000-square-foot, world-class art institution is born.
"What's incredibly unique here is the size of the project as it relates to population base," said Crystal Bridges executive director Robert Workman. "We're creating something here in northwest Arkansas that's normally done in a major metropolitan center. What's happening here over the course of just a few years normally takes up to 100 years to evolve, even in much larger metropolitan areas. (Crystal Bridges ) is a gift from someone here."
That someone is the daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. And while many around the country have lauded Alice Walton, who ranks No. 9 on Forbes' list of the 400 Richest Americans with an estimated worth of $ 15. 5 billion, for creating what will become an instant force in the art world, Crystal Bridges has also been a target of constant criticism by some outlets coast to coast.
Every day, Workman, hired by Walton in 2006 to turn her dream of a world-class art institution into reality, arrives at the Crystal Bridges offices in downtown Bentonville to find a long list of articles and blog entries published that morning about the soon-tobe museum. There is always plenty to comb through, and not all of it positive. In fact, there are several each week that question the approach and motives of Walton and Crystal Bridges.
For example, the Wall Street Journal recently published a story titled "The Walton Effect: Art World Is Roiled by Wal-Mart Heiress. "In the story, Lee Rosenbaum writes," Ms. Walton is using her fortune to fill her Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, scheduled to open in Bentonville, Ark., in 2009. She wants to be accepted by museum colleagues as a kindred spirit, so she can collaborate on exhibitions and borrow from other collections. But some of her most recent maneuvers have positioned her as a hovering culture vulture, poised to swoop down and seize tasty masterpieces from weak hands."
When Crystal Bridges was involved in purchasing masterworks from financially struggling Randolph College earlier this year, Newsweek published a story titled "A College Sells Its Art: Is It Selling Its Soul ?"
Within days of Crystal Bridges coming to an agreement with Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn., to purchase shared ownership of the university's famed Steiglitz Collection for a reported $ 30 million, the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, N. M., filed a motion attempting to stop the deal from going through. The Santa Fe-based museum contends the shared ownership proposal violates the agreement O'Keeffe and Fisk had when the university acquired the Steiglitz Collection. A three-day trial will begin Feb. 19 to settle the matter.
Workman said many of the critics of Crystal Bridges' potential deal with Fisk University have not mentioned the fact the agreement keeps the Stieglitz Collection intact, includes a $ 1 million pledge from Walton to renovate the gallery at Fisk, and establishes an internship program for Fisk students at the Bentonville-based museum.
"We believe in shepherding and establishing lasting relationships with universities and other important institutions like Fisk," Workman said. "We're doing the internship program with Fisk, regardless of the ruling on the Steiglitz Collection agreement. I think it's a real win-win situation."
The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum has a different opinion.
"Before (Crystal Bridges ) interfered, there was a settlement contract that had been signed by both the (Georgia O'Keeffe ) Museum and Fisk University," said Saul Cohen, president of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. "There was a settlement which Alice Walton prevented from being consummated."
Several publications and art-related blogs across the country have accused Walton of attempting to take important pieces of American artwork to northwest Arkansas, inferring that museums in more populated areas of the country are more deserving.
"There's always drama and momentary controversy," Workman said. "It's always been there. I've developed some pretty thick skin over the years. You have to. I'm much more interested in the feedback we get from our visitors here at the Massey (the museum's temporary exhibit space ) than some blogger or publication that doesn't know us from Adam. So many of these people have never been to northwest Arkansas to see everything this growing region has to offer.
"We remain focused on our vision, which is to found the best institution we can. We have a fabulous team in place, led by Alice and the Walton family. It's easy to get sucked into the petty comments. But we're taking the high road on this. People who are truly sophisticated understand we are one world. In today's world, location is becoming so secondary. This is about creating something special and lasting."
Dr. David R. Bringham, the Edna S. Tuttleman director of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Museum, agrees. The Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts actually spearheaded an effort to raise enough money in 45 days to match a $ 68 million offer by Crystal Bridges and The National Gallery of Art in Washintgon, D. C., to purchase Pennsylvania-native Thomas Eakins' painting "The Gross Clinic"from Thomas Jefferson University. The fundraising goal was met and the painting remains in Pennsylvania, but Bringham said Walton and Crystal Bridges have actually had a positive impact on the art world.
"I think what Crystal Bridges is doing is actually raising the profile of American art in this country," Bringham said. "It's making people and institutions around the country look at the treasures in their own back yards, and it's raising the value of those treasures."
As for claims Walton is focused on outbidding anyone for any piece of art she has her eye on, Workman said nothing can be further from the truth. While Walton is focused on building a significant collection, she is not willing to place any amount of money down just to make another acquisition.
"There are plenty of people out there paying more than we are for art," Workman said. "And we're not pressuring anyone into anything. There's always a seller first, and there's plenty we pass on. There is some degree of mystery around our collection, and that's by intent to some degree. But that's also going to make it very special when we open our doors. There will be surprises around every corner. There will also be some pieces people in the news said we were there bidding on that won't be on our walls. That just shows you can't believe everything people write."
In the end, Workman believes the clash of opinions regarding Crystal Bridges says something very positive about the power of art.
"I think the most exciting thing about this is that art is getting people excited," Workman said. "People care about art so much that we're getting an awful lot of ink across the country and around the world. Sometimes, all publicity is good publicity."
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