COVES Art Bridges Convening

Welcome!

Please bookmark this page as your central source for event information. Updates and important details will be added here as they become available.

This convening brings together a select group of participating museums to foster rich networking opportunities, collaborative problem solving, and focused dialogue. Participants will share success stories and best practices while exploring how data can be leveraged and compared across art institutions of varying sizes and geographic locations to inform decision-making and enhance visitor engagement.

Art Bridges looks forward to gathering our growing COVES Art Bridges cohort for a shared learning experience—one that strengthens our collective understanding and helps us better support COVES sites and evaluation practitioners.

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LOCATION

Heartland Whole Health Institute

850 Museum Way

Bentonville, AR 72712

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DATES

August 4–6, 2026

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ON-SITE CONTACT

Chelsea Malson, Convening Coordinator: **[email protected]

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PAGE DIRECTORY

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AGENDA

Please check back soon for a more detailed agenda.

DAY 1: August 4

Sessions	Participants
Data Advocacy for Executives	Speakers: Anne Kraybill (Art Bridges) and Rod Bigelow (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art)
Moderator: Juli Goss (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art)

DAY 2: August 5

Sessions	Participants
Opening Remarks	Speakers: Juli Goss (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art); Brittany Vernon and Max Fey (Art Bridges)
Setting the Stage: What We Know About Museum Visitors	Speakers: Kim Awa (Art Bridges) and Marissa Spear (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art)
Findings to Insights: Communicating Visitor Data through Storytelling	Speakers: Bryn Pernot (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art) and Liza Herzog (Barnes Foundation)
Learning from COVES Case Studies	Speakers: Roslyn Esperon (The Walters Art Museum) and Salina Cardias (Harn Museum of Art)
Moderator: Rachel Lindsey (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art)
Applying COVES to Your Museum Practically	Speakers: María Sotomayor de la Cruz (Art Bridges) and Meg Hasler (Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art)
Wrap-Up Remarks	Speakers: Brittany Vernon and Max Fey (Art Bridges)

DAY 3: August 6

Sessions	Participants
Reflections on the Previous Day	Speakers: Brittany Vernon and Max Fey (Art Bridges)
Looking Forward: What’s Next for COVES?	Speakers: Brittany Vernon and Max Fey (Art Bridges)
Closing Remarks	Speakers: Brittany Vernon and Max Fey (Art Bridges)

LOGISTICS

Venue & Transportation

Address: Heartland Whole Health Institute, 850 Museum Way, Bentonville, AR 72712
Wayfinding Map

Travel & Lodging

Hotel: 21c Museum Hotel Bentonville, 200 NE A St, Bentonville, AR 72712
Airfare will not be covered by Art Bridges; however, meals, ground transportation, and accommodations will be provided.

RESOURCES

Name and Likeness Personal Release Policy: By participating in this event, you acknowledge and agree that photography, audio, and/or video recording may occur. You grant Art Bridges and its designees the irrevocable right to photograph, record, and otherwise capture your image, likeness, and voice, and to use, reproduce, modify, publish, display, and distribute such materials, in any media now known or later developed, exclusively for Art Bridges’ charitable and educational purposes without further notice, approval, attribution, or compensation. If you do not wish to be photographed or recorded, please inform Art Bridges staff as soon as possible.