Academic Traveler

Museums West

May 3-6, 2012

The Academic Traveler presents Museums West, a regional excursion to explore museums and other repositories of culture in the region. First, we head west through the Mississippi Delta and Little Rock, finally arriving at the recently opened Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas. Praised in the New Yorker , The New York Times , and The Washington Post, this is "the most-talked-about new museum in the United States in a generation." On the return, travelers will stop in Memphis to visit two more cultural sites before returning to Oxford.

Travelers will:

• Visit the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale and explore the history of this uniquely American musical style
• View the Mississippi River from the Delta Cultural Center in West Helena and learn about the Mighty Mississippi and the culture of the region
• Tour the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and see artifacts from the administration and life of President Bill Clinton
• Take a private behind-the-scenes tour at the Arkansas Art Center, home to one of the most highly-regarded collections of works on paper including pieces by Cézanne, Van Gogh, Jackson Pollock, Georgia O'Keeffe, Alison Saar, Rembrandt and Rubens
• Tour the world-class collection at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art which includes works by Charles Wilson Peale, Thomas Hart Benton, Norman Rockwell, Andy Warhol, and Jenny Holzer.
• At Crystal Bridges, explore the stunning architecture of renowned architect Moshe Safdie and the museum grounds, which include 120-acre site containing 3.5 miles of trails that wind among streams, ponds, wetlands, native plants, and sculpture.
• Visit the Brooks Museum of Art and the National Ornamental Metal Museum, two of Memphis’ most exceptional museums.
  

Included in the program cost:

• Pre-departure educational material
• Pre-departure lectures
• Accommodations at the Doubletree, Little Rock, and Hilton Garden Inn, Bentonville
• Group museum admissions and tour fees
• Three dinners and Sunday brunch
• Ground transportation

Excluded from the program cost:

• Travel insurance
• Meals, other than those listed above
• Tips