Wal-Mart Heiress Puts Warhol Dolly Parton in $1.2 Billion Crystal Bridges

[1776Forever]

Ever wonder what the Wal-Mart Walton's do with their 93 Billion $$$ ( http://www.therichest.org/world/richest-family/ )? How about this for decadence in a country where poverty has risen expeditiously in the 10 years?
..........

Wal-Mart Heiress Puts Warhol Dolly Parton in $1.2 Billion Crystal Bridges
By James S. Russell - Oct 25, 2011 12:01 AM ET



http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-25/wal-mart-heiress-s-1-2-billion-castle-has-warhol-glass-bridge.html

Peeking over a railing, I look down into a heavily wooded ravine where beefy buildings in concrete curve around courtyards and wrap two ponds vaulted by copper- roofed bridges.

This hidden castle is the Crystal Bridges museum, in Bentonville, Arkansas.

It houses a historical survey of American art collected in just a few years at astonishing cost at the instigation of Alice Walton, heiress to the Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) fortune.

........ The heart-stopping prices are unavoidable for a museum seeking work of this caliber. In 2010, the Walton Family Foundation contributed more than $1.2 billion to support acquisitions and operations as well as construction. An additional $20 million gift endows free admission at the museum, which opens to the public on Nov. 11.

(more at link)

..........

Well I guess you could plan a vacation to Arkansas....But really how many homes could this have saved...How many homeless shelters could this have helped or food banks filled? Oh but this is culture right? I have nothing against wealth by the way, but I do believe it is important how one uses their wealth that makes a difference in this world. You cannot take it with you no matter how much you have in the bank!

[hobbit709]

1. Sure is dirty, scummy water for such a high dollar facility.

[eShirl]

3. Looks like the water hole at the local gravel pit. n/t

[hobbit709]

4. Most gravel pits have cleaner looking water.

[madokie]

12. Around here the water in the gravel pits is crystal clear

our small creeks are still in pretty good shape too

[Lucinda]

9. They aren't open yet. I assume this area is still under construction

http://crystalbridges.org/

[WolverineDG]

30. That would be my take on that picture too

It doesn't look finished. But let's not let something as silly as "facts" get in the way of finding a reason to dump on the Waltons, now shall we?

dg

[sinkingfeeling]

18. That's a construction site. Look at the trees. This was taken months ago and it's not opening until

November.

[Liberal_in_LA]

45. lol. I had the same thought.

[occupyeverywhere]

2. and so the Waltons try to candy-coat their decadence and greed

through "philanthropy"

[1776Forever]

5. Funds from Sam Walton's widow who passed in 2007 seem to be used pretty well....

http://www.alicewalton.org/projects.html

It just seems at this time in our history to spend 1.2+ Billion on a museum the money could have been used for a lot of good projects that would have helped many people in need.

[FSogol]

8. Not to defend the Walton family, but a 1.2 billion dollar project would

keep an architectural, engineering, and civil engineer firm busy for about 2 years. It would also create jobs for Contractors, equipment suppliers, laborers, etc. I have no problem spending money on art museums. That said, when I see that building, 1.2 billion doesn't seem evident. Warhol would have been amused.

[OnlinePoker]

14. The $1.2 Billion was used for acquisitions as well as construction.

I would say probably the majority of it.

[FSogol]

21. Oh, didn't notice that. Thanks. n/t

[sammytko]

24. Thank you! That money is keeping people working.

[IndyPragmatist]

6. So we should get rid of all museums because that money could have gone to the homeless instead?

I guess we should auction off the Mona Lisa for charity because there are homeless people in Paris.

I agree that the Waltons are terrible people, but the arts should be celebrated. It's rare that they do good things like this. I hope there is some good art in his museum as I have always felt bad for people who do not live near the east coast or other large city with great museums. Everyone should have the opportunity to experience great art and the Waltons are helping facilitate that...free of cost.

At least the Waltons are making their collection public. I can't say that for the owner of my favorite football team. Roman has a lot of masterpieces held up in his numerous yachts.:shrug:

[1776Forever]

7. Oh please i knew I would have someone say that - NO WE SHOULD NOT GET RID OF ALL MUSEUMS

Come on - I am just saying that $1.2 Billion could have been used more wisely if you wanted to do something with it. Duh:nopity:

[MedicalAdmin]

13. Bragging rights us PR spin.

Every person stepping foot in that place will be bombarded with messages about how generous the Waltons are. Meanwhile at the yacht club you can bet they will be bragging about how much they do for the unwashed masses.

I love museums. Public museums.

[1776Forever]

15. I am with you - nothing against the ART in the museum for sure. n/t

[MedicalAdmin]

26. Every kid who goes there will be given a pre-museum prep program video

for the teacher to play that will praise the Waltons to high heaven. And they will be given lots of slick brochures to take home that boasts the same thing as well.

And what is not talked about here is that this will be a private playground for the rich with a sop thrown to the masses. Further, the reason that these works of art are even selling at these prices is that the rich have no idea what to do with all of their filthy lucre so they are bidding each other up for the bragging rights.

Fuck the Jones. Fuck keeping up with them and Double Dog Super fuck the Walton's for the unpatriotic destroyers of America that they are.

[uncle ray]

28. do you suppose the average walmart worker can afford to take a trip to the museum?

i doubt they'd be allowed enough time off for a nice road trip.

[Divine Discontent]

38. There's nothing wrong with having a beautiful museum. There is something very disturbing about a

person spending $1,200,000,000.00 on a single building and its contents when there is so much suffering in the USA and tens of millions out of work, and homeless and hungry. Talk about losing the plot! It's not pragmatic at all to be spending that much money on her big toy! Just because she can, doesn't mean she should have to that extreme. That's why most people are nauseated by her display of excess and blind eye to the fact she pays a poverty wage in her 6000+ small business busting bigbox monstrosities.

[LynneSin]

46. I don't think that's the point

I think the point is that a shitload of money was spent to house those pieces of art in some remote location in Arkansas.

Why not loan (or donate) them to a Museum. I could appreciate wanting to keep them in Arkansas and I'm sure they have nice museusms in Little Rock, a city that is much more accessible to the public.

[Lucinda]

10. I'm happy to see such a great collection of American art being

housed in one location, and open to the public for no cost. Even their membership options are reasonably priced.

[1776Forever]

11. I am not displeased to see it - I just thought it was a huge amount of money. n/t

[Occulus]

19. Then it burns down, and you realize they put all our eggs in one basket.

[Lucinda]

34. So are you anti-museum then? Anywhere can burn unless you lock them up

in a fireproof room somewhere...and that's really not the point of art.

[n2doc]

16. 'Charity' = monuments to themselves

I don't care if they build these things. But I disagree with the notion that we need to leave rich people with low taxes because they fund charities. Much of the time they fund buildings that they have named after themselves. Or create 'charities' that serve as convenient job creators for their worthless soft offspring, and do little except beg for more money.

[Scuba]

17. How much healthcare for their employees so the taxpayers aren't stuck for it?

[sinkingfeeling]

20. Look, I live in Arkansas and haven't stepped foot in Wal-Mart for decades. However, I will

not criticize Crystal Bridges. It is going to be a beautiful museum and on this morning's news they were talking about the economic impact on the area. Already the price of acres around the site have gone up, new restaurants have come into Bentonville, and there are new housing developments planned.

Alice Walton has used her wealth to collect art from around the world. It will now be housed in Arkansas and admission is free for the next 5 years. I think it's wonderful that kids in the entire region will be exposed to art.

[1776Forever]

33. I am sure it is good in some ways - Just think $1,200,000,000 Billion is a lot to spend on it. n/t.

[Bluenorthwest]

22. Little Rock is home to the 80 million dollar Verizon Arena for sports

More than 20 million was raised via a sales tax to build it. A tax to build an arena. Did that also offend you? The people paid for it.

[1776Forever]

35. NO - It isn't the point here - Walton's have 93 Billion and to them $1.2 Billion for a Museum is a

pittance I am sure - $1.2 BILLION is much different then $80 Million for which was a shared project. I am NOT against ART or SPORTS or most anything! I am just saying when they decided to spend $1,200,000,000 Billion it seems to be overboard.

[DesMoinesDem]

23. You're complaining about someone building a museum that is open to the public and free?

WTF is wrong with you?

[WolverineDG]

31. No kidding

I'm shocked no one's whined about Carnegie or Smithson yet! The nerve of those two men---giving all their money away to build such stupid things like libraries & museums when there are poor people out there!

dg

[1776Forever]

32. I don't know if you were being sarcastic or not but I think it could have been "bought" for less

then $1,200,000,000 Billion $$$$$. I am not against the art that is housed there.

[Sedona]

25. This hit a nerve

Warning... long post

OK I’m a little wavering here between “Yay art!” to “Fuck the Walton family”.

I have spent quite a few days in the almost 50 year of my life in a few world class art museums in the US.
I live in the boonies, It’s a day’s drive to anything good.

One thing I noticed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art is more than half the tens of thousands of works from ginormous wall sized Renaissance paintings to tiny pieces of jewelry from ancient Egypt were donated by William Randolph Hurst . I laughed thinking that his collection couldn’t even fit in the stupendous castle he built for himself up the coast that I visited in 2008. He needed three stories on a whole city block in LA to contain the rest.

As an aside, if you haven’t seen the Tim Burton Exhibit at LACMA run to see it. It was so amazing I brought back my 16 year old daughter and two of her buds all the way from Sedona to see it too. It ends Oct 31st with a big Halloween party LACMA fundraiser for the 1%. I didn’t have much luck getting the girls to appreciate the rest of the masterpieces at the museum (I wasn’t a fan until my 30’s) but they were jazzed by the 3000 year old mummy and I did show them Five Car Stud. Read more below about this powerful exhibit.

http://www.lacma.org/art/exhibition/edward-kienholz-five-car-stud

It made the drive back to Santa Monica through Downtown Beverly Hills a little weird as we talked about it in the car.

I have yet to visit the two Getty museums in LA, but they are on my agenda for 2012.

http://www.getty.edu/visit/

So as much as I hate the big corporations and the people who run them, and think about how they’ve fucked up my health care and how my 25 year old daughter is losing the little house she put $75K down on just five years ago (she earned every penny herself), I have to say, we wouldn’t be able to see all the beautiful art and antiquities without them.

Life isn’t black and white. Some of the 1% isn’t awful. Some of them plunked down big bucks in LA for the Clinton Foundation the weekend I was in LA. Some of them gave millions to Obama last night there. Maybe this Walton woman has a few decent bones in her body. It’s not her fault she was born into a fucked up rich family. Maybe she’s just trying to do what she can to give back. I know I would. I know Hurst and Getty did some fucked up things too but they had more money than they knew what to do with so they bought all this amazing art and they are sharing it with the rest of us 100 years later. Hopefully those museums will be there forever.

I never had a reason in the world to ever visit Arkansas. If she’s picked up some decent 18th Century French Impressionists, Renaissance stuff and good antiquities (my personal favs) I just might have to go see her museum. I have yet to see my first Michelangelo.

Too bad she picked such a shitty name for it. Crystal Bridges? Really? OK. She bought it she can name it.

[TwilightGardener]

27. If it's open to the unwashed public, then I am fine with it. Andrew Carnegie

gave me a such a gift with his beautiful library and museum in Pittsburgh. It's where I learned to appreciate so many things growing up--art, architecture, history.

[sfpcjock]

29. WTF? n/t

[Evasporque]

36. Still looks like a trailer house in the backyard...nt

[Divine Discontent]

37. what a nauseating flaunting of $1,200,000,000.00 in a gross display of excess!

has that woman no shame? One billion, 200 million dollars on the acquisition, construction, and operational budget. The place looks, well, like WalMart built it!

:puke:

You shall know them by their works... That amount of money could have opened a food kitchen in every major city in America and funded it for decades!!! I jest not! 200 city food kitchens at an operating budget of a half million a year would only be 100 million a year, and the interest on 1.2 billion would be a large return each year. Ms Walton sounds batty!



Get it here now, or one of a million other designs! http://www.zazzle.com/republicans_2012_keeping_millions_out_of_work_bumper_sticker-128659602907896843?rf=238107662556833486

[1776Forever]

40. Yes I agree totally - Not against ART or MUSEUMS - Just wish they had done

more with $1.2 Billion if they wanted to "play" with their money. Wonder how those Walmart employees that lost their health benefits feel about that.

[Divine Discontent]

42. Ouch. So true. I'm sure they are just *thrilled* to hear Ms Walton spend a billion on a playhouse.

[Maven]

39. Looks like a giant cockroach on a mud pond.

Yuck.

[1776Forever]

41. I didn't want to be the one to say it - but yes I thought the same thing! n/t

[Divine Discontent]

43. Bwa-ha! Good one... I call it... "wannabe Hillbilly Chic"

Get it here now, or one of a million other designs! http://www.zazzle.com/republicans_2012_keeping_millions_out_of_work_bumper_sticker-128659602907896843?rf=238107662556833486

[Yavin4]

44. WalMart Should Buy Their Employees Health Insurance

Instead of this bullshit.