"Not everyone's going to like everything, ever, anywhere. But for me, it's successful when people come away with questions or conversations or are really still thinking about something after they've left the space."
-- Lauren Haynes, curator of visual arts at The Momentary
What the point?
The opening of The Momentary in Bentonville is a great milestone in development of Northwest Arkansas’ arts culture and economy.
How many ways can a phrase using a variation of "moment" be turned?
A moment like this.
Not a moment too soon.
A defining moment.
Caught up in the moment.
Never a dull moment.
The moment of truth.
Live for the moment.
One moment in time.
Those are just the few examples we came up with, but we could spare but a moment or two.
Ever since planners for a new contemporary art space in a retooled cheese factory in Bentonville announced its name, The Momentary, in 2017, the moniker has evoked all sorts of etymological gymnastics. Such exercises reflect the natural habitat of magazine writers, crafters of headlines and word-searching editorialists.
But, as this new venue for artistic celebration prepares to open its doors and its creativity to visitors for the first time this weekend, it seems clear a great many of those phrases capture the qualities of what one will experience at The Momentary.
"The Momentary really talks about the idea that every time you come you'll experience something new and interesting," Rod Bigelow said in 2017 in announcing the facility's name. Bigelow is executive director of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Arts, the monumental, Walton family-backed art institution that transformed Northwest Arkansas when it opened in 2011. The Momentary is born of the same
"The exciting ideas of contemporary artists of our time is that they're always propelling us forward in ways that we may not expect, and I think that's what we're looking for in this space and therefore the name," Bigelow said at the time.
From the outside looking in, which is the vantage point most of us have had so far, the name was a bit of a head-scratcher. Rather than describe a building, it seemed a reference to time itself -- fleeting, transient, impermanent, passing.
And now that more details are known of the opening days and weeks ahead, the name seems just right for the 63,000-square-food multidisciplinary space for visual and performing arts, festivals, and explorations of culinary and artistic expressions.
An examination of the coming exhibits and performances demonstrate the ever-changing nature of The Momentary. Visual art promises a mixture of the familiar, the flamboyant and the far out. Performances -- from singing to dancing to audience participation to cooking -- will inspire reactions ranging from awe to "what the ...?"
People who go to The Momentary will certainly see and sometimes touch, and they'll hear plenty. From what we can tell from the schedule of performances and exhibitions, we also have not doubt visitors will also feel. Abundantly.
Given its location in a former Kraft factory, we'd even predict some displays might seem a little ... cheesy.
The Momentary fits nicely into the established and developing arts scene of Northwest Arkansas and will contribute substantially to the arts economy. The Northwest Arkansas Council, a private, regional advocacy group of business men and women, a couple of years ago release a report estimating the region's nonprofit arts and cultural industry was generating more than $130 million in annual economic activity. It had been measured at around $46 million just five years before.
Consider all that is happening in the region that's sure to grow that impact. One observer referred to it as Northwest Arkansas' arts ecosystem, and it's growing. TheaterSquared opened in Fayetteville. The Walton Arts Center next door underwent a huge expansion. The Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion in Rogers continues to thrive with its offering of larger-scale concerts and the Scott Family Amazeum in Bentonville delivers creative experiences for young people. In Fayetteville, voters backed development of a so-called cultural arts corridor linking its many arts-related institutions. And the University of Arkansas is developing its School of Art and associated Windgate Art and Design District in south Fayetteville.
That's not to mention dozens of other performing, musical and visual arts organizations that have operated for years in the region.
Will The Momentary deliver the same impact that Crystal Bridges did with its opening in 2011? The honest answer is simple: It doesn't have to.
Just as the grandkids of Sam and Helen Walton are forging a somewhat different philanthropic path than their parents, The Momentary isn't attempting to be a copy of the colossal American art museum located a short distance away in an Ozarks ravine, but by virtue of its eclectic offerings, it will forge its own path and become a destination unto itself.
The exhilarating idea of The Momentary is that it will be forever changing, always a different experience and always hitting visitors with offerings that touch all the senses.
What is The Momentary? Its mission means the answer to that question is "yes, it is." As much a non sequitur as that seems, it's that way be design. Whatever it is on opening weekend will last a short while; what comes after it will be different, always.
Crystal Bridges changed, dramatically, the trajectory of downtown Bentonville and realigned the art world's expectations of what's possible in middle America. The Momentary may be a little more challenging for people to grasp, but its promise as an inspiring and challenging institution is great.
The moment-um is just getting started.
Commentary on 02/21/2020