Without Walls

Walmart Museum opens doors, sidewalks to new programs

The sidewalks aren't always big enough. So that means the nearby street turns into a playground outside the Walmart Museum during the weekly Sidewalk Sundays event.

Don't worry. The street gets closed off by police on that occasion to provide a safe haven for art.

FAQ

Sidewalk Sundays

WHEN — 2-5 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 26

WHERE — Walmart Museum in Bentonville

COST — Free

INFO — 273-1329

FYI

Walmart Museum

Schedule

A condensed schedule of events at the Walmart Museum in Bentonville includes:

Play It Forward concerts, which begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Walmart World Room

Saturday — RJ Mischo

Aug. 30 — The Tritones

Sept. 6 — Sarah Hughes

Sidewalk Sundays, from 2-5 p.m. on the museum’s sidewalk

Sunday — Bubble blowing with the School of Rock

Aug. 24 — Trike Theater

Aug. 30 — Classic games and classic rock with School of Rock

What started as something attended by just a few has blossomed into something hundreds enjoy weekly, says Alan Dranow, senior director of the Walmart Heritage Group. The group oversees the Walmart Museum on the west side of the Bentonville square in addition to the retailer's archives and its internal Walmart World magazine.

The Sidewalk Sundays series of events, new in July and now scheduled to continue through the end of October, celebrates a vision of Alice Walton. The Walmart heiress remembers the "carnival" atmosphere of the downtown square, and the square today bustles on many days thanks in large part to her nearby Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. But Sundays were slower for the museum, which led to the idea for Sidewalk Sundays.

"Sundays were sleepy on the square. We wanted to step up and help make it a place where families can go for a fun and safe event," Dranow says.

Events often have a tie to Walmart, such as an earlier fencing event conducted via a partnership with the Northwest Arkansas Fencing Center. Walmart matriarch Helen Walton lettered in fencing while in college, Dranow says.

"We keep that relevance to our history," he says.

Sidewalk Sundays are an example of the growing slate of activities at the museum. July also saw the beginning of the Play It Forward series of concerts in the Walmart World Room, located on the third floor of the museum building. The concerts feature local musicians, and all proceeds go to a charity with Bentonville or regional ties.

Beginning in September, the museum will also host a series of programs called "Inside the Archives." The events will feature a notable Walmart employee or guest speaking on the history of an artifact pulled from the archives. Specific dates have not been set for the archive series, Dranow says.

-- Kevin Kinder

[email protected]

NAN What's Up on 08/15/2014

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