Uploaded February 2021 | Updated September 2026, 8 hours ago
Take a tour of "Companion Species," an exhibition organized by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, Arkansas, on view November 21, 2020, through May 24, 2021.
Here, we walk through the galleries with Mindy Besaw, Curator of American Art at Crystal Bridges, and Ashley Holland, Assistant Curator with Art Bridges, an organization that supports the creation of collection-based exhibitions of American art at museums of all sizes.
"Companion Species" is a new focus exhibition and collaborative project that takes inspiration from the recent Crystal Bridges acquisition, "Companion Species (Speech Bubble)" by Marie Watt (Seneca). In the spirit of Watt, who embraces community and connectedness at the heart of her artwork, the exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, and will be presented across the two museum sites.
Watt’s monumental textile was created through community sewing circles across Northwest Arkansas and in Portland, Oregon and Honolulu, Hawaii in 2018 and 2019. Words such as neighbor, companion, hate, mother, and brother are rendered in unique stitches reflecting the hands of the many contributors of the sewing circles. The words draw attention to relatedness, and also come from the Marvin Gaye song “What’s Going On,” penned by Gaye, Renaldo Benson and Al Cleveland in 1969 in response to racial violence. In both cases, familial terms like “mother” and “brother” are not used solely to indicate biological awareness, but to extend to all humans, and in Iroquois teaching, to animals and the environment as well.
In the spirit of Watt, who embraces community and connectedness at the heart of her artwork, the exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, and will be presented across the two museum sites. Companion Species will be on view at Crystal Bridges November 21, 2020 to May 24, 2021. MONAH is working their re-opening plans and will announce exhibition dates on their website soon.
Sponsored By TERRA Foundation for American Art, Marybeth and Micky Mayfield.
After its run at Crystal Bridges, this focus exhibition will travel to other museums with support from Art Bridges. Learn more about the exhibition here: CrystalBridges.org/exhibitions/Companion-Species
Visit our website: CrystalBridges.org
Sign up for eNews: bit.ly/CrystalBridges-eNews
Follow us on social media
Facebook: Facebook.com/CrystalBridgesMuseum
Instagram: Instagram.com/CrystalBridgesMuseum
Twitter: Twitter.com/CrystalBridges
LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/company/Crystal-Bridges-Museum-of-American-Art
Pinterest: Pinterest.com/CrystalBridges
Take a tour of "Companion Species," an exhibition organized by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, Arkansas, on view November 21, 2020, through May 24, 2021.
Here, we walk through the galleries with Mindy Besaw, Curator of American Art at Crystal Bridges, and Ashley Holland, Assistant Curator with Art Bridges, an organization that supports the creation of collection-based exhibitions of American art at museums of all sizes.
"Companion Species" is a new focus exhibition and collaborative project that takes inspiration from the recent Crystal Bridges acquisition, "Companion Species (Speech Bubble)" by Marie Watt (Seneca). In the spirit of Watt, who embraces community and connectedness at the heart of her artwork, the exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, and will be presented across the two museum sites.
Watt’s monumental textile was created through community sewing circles across Northwest Arkansas and in Portland, Oregon and Honolulu, Hawaii in 2018 and 2019. Words such as neighbor, companion, hate, mother, and brother are rendered in unique stitches reflecting the hands of the many contributors of the sewing circles. The words draw attention to relatedness, and also come from the Marvin Gaye song “What’s Going On,” penned by Gaye, Renaldo Benson and Al Cleveland in 1969 in response to racial violence. In both cases, familial terms like “mother” and “brother” are not used solely to indicate biological awareness, but to extend to all humans, and in Iroquois teaching, to animals and the environment as well.
In the spirit of Watt, who embraces community and connectedness at the heart of her artwork, the exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Museum of Native American History (MONAH) in Bentonville, and will be presented across the two museum sites. Companion Species will be on view at Crystal Bridges November 21, 2020 to May 24, 2021. MONAH is working their re-opening plans and will announce exhibition dates on their website soon.
Sponsored By TERRA Foundation for American Art, Marybeth and Micky Mayfield.
After its run at Crystal Bridges, this focus exhibition will travel to other museums with support from Art Bridges. Learn more about the exhibition here: CrystalBridges.org/exhibitions/Companion-Species
Visit our website: CrystalBridges.org
Sign up for eNews: bit.ly/CrystalBridges-eNews
Follow us on social media
Facebook: Facebook.com/CrystalBridgesMuseum
Instagram: Instagram.com/CrystalBridgesMuseum
Twitter: Twitter.com/CrystalBridges
LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/company/Crystal-Bridges-Museum-of-American-Art
Pinterest: Pinterest.com/CrystalBridges
