The Momentary contemporary art space to open this weekend

The Momentary / Courtesy photo

The moment art lovers in the region have been waiting for since 2016 is finally here.

The Momentary, the contemporary art space and sister project of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art that has been under construction for several years, will officially open to the public for the first time this weekend (Feb. 22).

The part-museum, part-performance facility / gathering space will be located in the 63,000-square-foot former Kraft Foods cheese factory building and surrounding grounds at 507 SE E St, not far from the downtown Bentonville square.

A celebration includes a performance art festival called Time Being, and a new art exhibit intended to be an examination of contemporary art in America called “State of the Art 2020” will debut along with the opening of the facility.

The fun begins a day early for Momentary members with a preview event on Friday, Feb. 21 featuring an early look at the new facility, along with performances by weekend headliners Courtney Barnett (solo) and FM Belfast.

Then on Saturday, Feb. 22, the Momentary officially opens with more performances by Barnett, FM Belfast, Mary Lattimore, and others, along with the opening of State of the Art, and more.

Sunday, Feb. 23 programming includes performances by artists Annie Dorsen, Kristen Worrall, Shaun Gladwell, and others.

Tickets to the events are free, though you’ll need to pre-register for them, and as of this afternoon, many are already sold out.

Parking is limited, as well, so Momentary officials are asking attendees to park either downtown or at Crystal Bridges and hop on the shuttle to the Momentary. Passengers will be picked up/dropped off at Crystal Bridges and 21c Museum Hotel, and of course, if you can bike, walk, or ride-share, that would also be helpful.

For more information, or to reserve tickets, visit themomentary.org.

The Momentary Schedule Highlights

Feb. 21
(Member Preview Day)
6:45 p.m. – Bandaloop
7 p.m. – Courtney Barnett (solo)
9:30 p.m. – FM Belfast

Feb. 22
All Day – Debut of the “State of the Art II” exhibit of contemporary art (runs through May 24)
11 a.m. & 3 p.m. – “First Things First”
2 p.m. – Kristin Worrall’s “The Recipe: Milk, Cheese, Velveeta, Love, Hope & Transformation”
6:45 p.m. – Bandaloop
7 p.m. – Hermigervall
8 p.m. – Courtney Barnett (solo)
10 p.m. – FM Belfast