Plan your visit to “American 250: Common Threads,” now on view at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
April 21, 2026
In the center of a gallery, two local quilters operate sewing machines, busy and whirring away. Framed by the backdrop of their multi-colored collaboration, the quilters answer a gallery guest’s questions as they work.
They are piecing together fabric squares decorated by K-12 students across Arkansas in a work designed by St. Louis-born artist Basil Kincaid. The students’ work shares their thoughts on the American experience.
Kinkaid’s live and interactive piece is one of many artworks on view in “American 250: Common Threads,” the latest special exhibition now open at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
In 2026, the United States will mark 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. “America 250: Common Threads” commemorates the events of 1776 and reflects on the American experience through the perspectives of many different artists.
Kinkaid’s work is just one example of how “America 250: Common Threads” delivers a layered perspective on American stories in art.
“One goal of the exhibition was to surprise people,” says Larissa Randall, assistant curator of American art at Crystal Bridges.
“We’re looking forward to sharing the many different ways artists have documented, celebrated, questioned and reimagined the symbols and stories that shape the national identity of the United States,” Randall said.
An early engraving of the Declaration of Independence anchors a group of historic documents from 1776 to 1876, including quilts, samplers, prints and paintings. Visitors will experience how people have celebrated national and personal moments in history, from a display of hundreds of 20th-century patriotic snapshots to souvenirs collected from the US Centennial in 1876.
The exhibition also explores the symbols artists turn to when reflecting on the United States: George Washington’s many faces, eagles appearing across books, baskets and coverlets, flags seen as quilts or as documentation of the moon landing and more. Contemporary artists featured in the exhibition, such as Robert Colescott, Kay WalkingStick and Howard Finster, continue to revisit national symbols and explore their resonance.
This sweeping exhibit is on view through July 27, 2026, at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
Plan Your Visit
Tickets to America 250: Common Threads are $15 and free for museum members, veterans, SNAP participants, and anyone 25 and under. General admission to the museum is always free.
America 250: Common Threads is organized in partnership with the American Folk Art Museum. This exhibition is part of Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026, presented by Craft in America.
More information here.