Inside the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art's major expansion

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas will open a major expansion on 6 June, adding 114,000 square feet to its 134-acre campus and increasing overall space by about 50%. Designed by Safdie Architects and estimated to cost more than $100 million, the project includes 29,000 square feet of new galleries and will bring 200 previously unshown works from the permanent collection onto view, alongside artists such as Mary Cassatt, Theaster Gates, Jun Kaneko, and Kiki Smith. The expansion also adds ceramics and digital-art studios, a “home-like” community lounge, and an outdoor Ozark Discovery Canopy playscape designed by landscape architect Bryan Hanes. Deputy director Austen Barron Bailly cited record attendance—more than 800,000 visitors last year—and collection growth, especially in craft and Indigenous art, as key drivers; the museum is also refreshing existing galleries and opening Keith Haring in 3D (6 June 2026–25 January 2027).

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