To Dine For with Kate Sullivan

KATE SULLIVAN: In the northwest corner of Arkansas, nestled amidst dense foliage and sheer natural beauty, is an unlikely spot for a world-class art museum.

And yet, here it is: Crystal Bridges Museum.

The brainchild of the daughter of an American business icon.

And today, we're meeting the woman who created it.

KATE: Alice, it's so nice to meet you.

ALICE WALTON: Kate, it is a pleasure to have you here.

It's so good to meet you.

KATE: Alice Walton is the world's richest woman, not one of, but the richest.

And today, Alice is taking me to her favorite restaurant to hear what she loves and why she loves it.

ALICE: Wow.

KATE: Mm-hmmm.

That's like heaven in a fork-full.

ALICE: That is really, really good.

KATE: And then, we're hearing the full story of Alice Walton.

What was it like being the only daughter of Sam Walton: who created Walmart, and changed the face of American retail, and became the wealthiest family in America?

ALICE: What is wealth if it's not happiness?

And money doesn't do that.

KATE: We learn how art became such a passion for Alice and why she created this museum that is free for any visitor.

ALICE: It took me to where I wanted to be, not where I was.

KATE: And then, Alice's new vision for healthcare, a medical school, and a cutting-edge approach to how we handle the study and practice of medicine.

ALICE: If I don't recognize that something needs to be done, then shame on me.

KATE: What's better in life than a bottle of wine, great food, and an amazing conversation?

My name is Kate Sullivan, and I am the host of To Dine For .

I'm a journalist, a foodie, and traveler with an appetite for the stories of people who are hungry for more: dreamers, visionaries, artists: those who hustle hard in the direction they love.

I travel with them to their favorite restaurant to hear how they did it.

This show is a toast to them and their American Dream.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... (Music and chatter) MAN: During the weekends, we do like a grill.

(Clatter of chess board) MAN #2: You know you have bragging rights in the hood.

I'm like, "My guy won the game."

(Clatter of chess piece and men yelling and cheering) FEMALE ANNOUNCER: At American National, we honor the "do"-ers and the dreamers: The people who gets things done and keep the world moving.

Our local agents are honored to serve your community, because it's their community, too.

American National.

KATE: Hello, everyone.

Today, I'm in Bentonville, Arkansas, on my way into a restaurant called Eleven, which opened on November 11, 2011.

I am meeting a visionary philanthropist, a passionate advocate for the arts, and the creator of Crystal Bridges Museum.

I can't wait for you to meet Alice Walton.

Alice, it's so nice to meet you.

ALICE: Kate, it is a pleasure to have you here and it's so good to meet you.

KATE: I am so thrilled to be at Crystal Bridges and I'm so excited for our lunch.

KATE: Walking into Eleven, the stunning restaurant on the Crystal Bridges Museum campus, feels like entering an immersive art exhibit all its own.

This room is absolutely beautiful.

You feel like you're inside and you're outside.

ALICE: Absolutely.

And I love all the angles and the curves.

KATE: With soaring windows and an expansive arched ceiling, Eleven brings the nature of Northwest Arkansas into the dining room, offering the most natural, inspiring welcome.

TIM ORDWAY: Our pillars of the museum are art, architecture, and nature, so we get to be the glue that puts it all together, and food really is a way to connect people to all that.

KATE: Chef Tim Ordway's menu at Eleven offers elevated Southern comfort food, mixed with modern culinary influences, serving a collection of flavors that both honors the region and inspires the imagination.

TIM: Southern food that's been influenced by the people who have come, the people who have left, and people that remain here.

So, there's influences from so many different places.

KATE: Folded into it all is a deliberate intention of wellness, dishes that are not just delicious but also truly nourishing.

TIM: We look at wellness in a lot of different ways.

We can either go food as medicine or what makes me feel well when I am maybe uncomfortable, and the food can be that warm welcome.

KATE: Today, we're warmly welcomed with the finest Southern fare, starting with a fall salad of roasted local delicata squash, kale, kohlrabi, goat cheese, cranberries, and a mix of toasted seeds dressed in a lemon thyme vinaigrette.

And then, the delectable braised pork shoulder with creamy Delta Grind grits, grilled apple chutney, and salted walnuts.

And, finally, a sweet sampling of avocado and coconut gelato with sesame brittle.

ALICE: And buttermilk biscuits.

KATE: (laughs) Should we start there?

ALICE: Let's do it.

KATE: Let's start with the biscuits.

ALICE: (both laugh) Thank you.

KATE: The butter alone looks amazing.

Thank you for bringing me to Eleven.

I know your fingerprints are all over this restaurant, and I'm wondering, what do you love most about it?

ALICE: Uh, the fact that you are not really sure whether you're inside or outside.

KATE: Mmm.

ALICE: And Chef Tim does an amazing job with the food.

It's what we call high south.

KATE: High south, elevated Southern cuisine.

ALICE: Yeah.

(laughs) KATE: Well, this is home for you.

You grew up very close to here.

Is that right?

ALICE: About 200 yards up the creek.

KATE: Did you really?

That close?

I didn't know it was that close.

ALICE: Yes.

KATE: Oh, my gosh...so tell me, how would you describe your childhood.

ALICE: Oh, it was pretty wonderful.

Bentonville was a town of about two thousand people then, you know, versus today, it's a big difference.

We used to walk to school, the public school.

We used to play hide and seek here.

This was our family doctor's property, Dr. Compton.

It's a pretty great place to grow up.

KATE: You had three older brothers.

You're the baby.

ALICE: That's right.

KATE: The only girl.

ALICE: That's right.

KATE: Were there any unwritten rules in your household?

ALICE: We didn't watch TV on school nights.

We were to either study or read books.

We never talked back to our mother or daddy; we would pay.

(laughs) KATE: Did you feel like you were more like your mother or your father?

ALICE: Uh, my dad probably, my dad.

I was always very close to him.

KATE: Alice's dad was Sam Walton, an American farm boy who tried his hand at retail and turned one store into Walmart, the largest retailer in the world, worth more than $650 billion today.

Alice grew up with a front row seat to his legendary pursuit of the American dream.

KATE: Your dad has said, of all his children, he felt like you were most like him.

He called you a maverick.

Do you agree with that?

ALICE: (laughs) Well, I think it's a great compliment, because I love my daddy.

I guess I'm a dreamer and very curious by nature, and I love to learn.

And I think those were qualities that my dad had.

And I love people, and that was his most important quality.

KATE: You think so?

The fact that he loved people?

ALICE: Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

KATE: It can be a superpower, can't it?

ALICE: It can be.

It can be.

And he, you know, he really believed in the power and the brilliance of everyday people, and it was really his job to bring out the very best.

KATE: Where other companies were going to the cities, he went to where the people were to start the Walmarts, right?

He started in the small towns, which, at the time, wasn't happening.

ALICE: No, it wasn't.

And rural America really got the short end of the stick when it came to retailing because they'd be charged, you know, if you were 100 miles from the closest major metropolitan area, you couldn't afford the gas to go to the city where there was more competition, and so you were paying exorbitant prices, really, to the local retailer.

That was all you had.

I tell you one other thing that my dad gave me that I'm so appreciative of.

I have no fear of risk.

KATE: You have no fear of risk?

ALICE: Not really.

And, I think, I know that came from my dad.

I'm not afraid to take chances.

I'm not afraid to, what some people would call, fail.

To dad, you know, you'd try 15 things and 13 of them aren't going to work.

And it's looking at the world not in terms of success and failure but looking at the world in terms of what do you need to try to find the right way.

KATE: Hmmmm...tell me where your first love of art began.

ALICE: We used to go on family camping trips.

Dad would take off for a month every summer and we would camp out in a different part of the national parks, different part of the country, in the national and state parks.

And uh, I would always take my watercolors and my charcoals, and paint the landscape.

KATE: You would take watercolors and charcoals on a camping trip?

ALICE: Oh, yeah.

KATE: Wow.

ALICE: Oh, yeah.

Because I love to paint nature, and that was my favorite thing.

So, that's how it all started.

And mama always encouraged me.

KATE: Hello!

TIM: Thank you.

Thanks for joining us today.

KATE: And what do we have here?

TIM: So, we've got a fall-inspired salad with local squash.

ALICE: That's beautiful, Tim.

KATE: Alice left Bentonville to attend Trinity College in San Antonio, Texas, exploring her love of art and drama before settling on a major in finance.

She worked as an Equity Analyst and Investment Strategist for several firms before founding her own investment company in 1988, The Llama Company: where she was President, Chairwoman, and CEO.

As she built her own career, Walmart skyrocketed into the now famous retail giant.

By 1992 when her father passed away, Walmart was worth nearly $50 billion dollars, making Alice, her mother Helen, and her brothers among the richest people in the world.

Alice continued to run The Llama Company until 1998, when she closed its doors and turned her attention more fully to her love of art.

KATE: Oh, my goodness.

ALICE: Oh, boy.

KATE: Oh, boy is right.

(Alice laughs) TIM: Some apple-braised pork shoulder over some creamy Delta style grits.

KATE: Mmmmm!

That's like heaven in a fork-full, right?

ALICE: That is really, really good.

KATE: The grits are creamy.

ALICE: I'm proud of our food here.

KATE: Yeah.

ALICE: I really am.

And the team does such a great job, and they're very creative.

KATE: This is delicious, wow.

ALICE: Oh, it's so good.

KATE: Can you put into words what art does for someone?

Because there's so many people that say, "Alice Walton has all this money.

She could do so many things with it, but she has chosen art to be where she puts her flag."

And I'm just wondering, can you articulate why?

ALICE: I think that in order to connect with art, you have to open yourself and you really have to learn how to look in a way that goes beyond the surface.

I really believe art in my own life has played a major role in helping me get through the anxiety, the fear, the depression that can come with a chronic condition, which I had for many years.

I had an accident that ended up with a chronic infection for 12 years.

KATE: Wow.

ALICE: And I had over 30 operations.

So, I was in the hospital a lot.

KATE: While on vacation in Mexico in 1983, Alice lost control of her car and suffered severe injuries, including breaking both of her legs.

It was the first of several car accidents in her lifetime and led to over 30 surgeries and years of health struggles with chronic pain, infection, and depression.

ALICE: So, I really learned firsthand, you know, that I had a choice, number one.

Do I want to see the glass half full, or do I want to see it half empty?

And if you choose to see it half full, it's a choice.

It's a choice.

KATE: Every day.

ALICE: And art can help you make that transition.

I truly believe that.

So, I think that art, from my perspective, has been right in the middle of my own mental health and well being, and my own happiness.

I would always arm myself when I went into the hospital with my watercolors.

KATE: You'd bring them with you?

ALICE: Oh, yeah.

My art books and my watercolors.

And that's how I stayed on the right side of the half full glass.

KATE: It transported you to another place away from... ALICE: It took me where I wanted to be, not where I was.

KATE: And if you had to pinpoint or identify a piece of art that really started your love of collecting and acquiring art, what would it be?

ALICE: So, there are two watercolors that I have by Winslow Homer, and they're the ones that really, when I saw them, I fell in love with them.

One is, "Guide Hiding Under a Canoe" and the other is, "Houghton Farm."

And I just fell in love with them.

And when I saw the price, I went "ruh oh," and I say, well, if I'm going to do this, which I went ahead and did it, I've got to learn more about art.

So that led me to my 30-year book-study of art and art history.

KATE: I get the feeling that you're someone who understands the value of a piece but also is motivated by what you see that you love.

Am I right?

ALICE: Yeah, you know, my finance background, I have to feel like I'm paying the right price.

KATE: Right, value.

ALICE: That I've done my homework.

Uh, I want value, but I don't collect art from a financial perspective or an investment perspective at all.

I collect strictly what I love.

KATE: If you operate from a place of what you love, then regardless of the value, you're going to be very happy if you have it in twenty years.

ALICE: That's exactly right.

KATE: Alice has acquired an enormous collection of work by renowned American artists, ranging from watercolors by Winslow Homer and John Singer Sargent, to a portrait of George Washington by Charles Willson Peale.

As well as contemporary works by Norman Rockwell, Georgia O'Keeffe, Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol, and many others.

In 2011, she opened the doors to the stunning Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, a 200,000 square foot museum designed by world renowned architect Moshe Safdie, bringing the world-class collection of American art directly to the Arkansas heartland.

Set on 120 acres of nature with miles of hiking trails and an outdoor sculpture park, it is all offered to the community for free.

When you opened Crystal Bridges, what was your inspiration and why here?

ALICE: Well, the first thing I'd say is, why not here?

You know.... KATE: This is your home.

ALICE: It's my home.

It's the place I love.

And these are the people in this region that had no access to art.

I had no access to art.

You know, it was a three-hour drive to the closest museum.

And so, I really wanted people to have access.

When I learned through art, it's like history in 3D.

I want our kids to grow up with that, with that nuanced story of what really America is, present, and past, and future.

KATE: So, this is both an art museum and a history museum, all rolled in one.

ALICE: It is.

KATE: Yeah.

ALICE: It is.

To me, art is education.

It's hope.

And It's opening your eyes and your soul to things on an everyday basis.

KATE: In 2019, Alice then turned her attention to healthcare, founding the Heartland Whole Health Institute, a nonprofit with a mission to broaden access to quality healthcare, focused in rural areas.

In collaboration with the St. Louis-based Mercy Hospital System and the Cleveland Clinic, the effort aims to expand care throughout Arkansas, beginning with an emphasis on cardiology.

And then, summer 2025, she will welcome the very first class of medical students at the state-of-the-art Alice L. Walton School of Medicine at the Crystal Bridges campus, offering a complete reinvention of medical education.

Through a partnership with Stanford Medical School, graduates will receive a Doctor of Medicine degree with additional training in nutrition, food sciences, mental health, wellness, and even art.

The plan is to serve medically underserved rural areas first, but with a long-term vision of disrupting the cost, quality, and focus of healthcare on a national level.

Can you tell me what precipitated that pivot from focusing on Crystal Bridges to now Whole Health Institute and also the medical school?

ALICE: You know, from my perspective, I've been so blessed, and I realize that.

I really want to use my ability and my resources to try to create the things that are needed in this region.

I care desperately about rural America.

Those are my roots, and I'm proud of it.

And when you look at, you know, I had my own journey in healthcare, and when you look at the lack of access to quality healthcare.

We have, in Arkansas, four counties without a doctor.

KATE: Wow.

ALICE: We have eight counties without a hospital and one doctor.

We are 50th in the country in maternal health.

You know, if I don't care about these things and if I don't recognize that something needs to be done, then shame on me.

That's kind of the way I look at it.

KATE: So, you feel a deep obligation to champion this.

ALICE: Yes, I do.

Yes, I do.

KATE: From what I understand about this medical school, this is going to be very different.

This is about the mind, body, spirit.

This isn't your typical medical school.

ALICE: Doctors are going to be taught in a totally different way.

And I really believe that, you know, docs are traditionally not taught much on nutrition, on preventative health.

The way the healthcare system works is all the incentives in healthcare are for you to get sick, so we can fix you.

KATE: Financial.

ALICE: Financial.

KATE: Yes.

ALICE: So, the Whole Health Institute's primary purpose is to work with federal and state governments on policy changes that incentivize keeping people healthy and really flipping the financial incentives in healthcare upside-down.

KATE: Well, you were just given the distinction, I believe in the past couple weeks, of the world's richest woman.

Do you pay any attention to those lists?

Because I know your mom has been on them, your brothers have been on them, but now you are the world's richest woman.

ALICE: You know, I hate that.

(laughs) KATE: Do you?

ALICE: Yeah, I do.

KATE: Because of the attention?

ALICE: I'm thankful for the resources, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't have anything to do with who I am or what I am.

(chuckles) KATE: How has your definition of what it means to be truly wealthy changed over the years?

ALICE: I don't think it's changed really.

I've got lots of friends and families out here in rural Arkansas that may make 30 to 60 thousand a year, and they are so wealthy.

They love where they live.

You know, they have great families around them, their community supports them.

And what is wealth, if it's not happiness, and money doesn't do that.

KATE: When people hear the name Alice Walton, and there's so many buildings named after you, what do you want them to think?

ALICE: I hope, when my day comes, that people can look and say, "She did the best with what she had."

KATE: Mmm.

ALICE: Yeah, pretty simple.

KATE: After an incredibly high south meal, we made our way to the museum galleries, which brought instant joy to Alice.

What's your first reaction to this picture?

ALICE: Pure happiness.

KATE: (Alice laughs) Happiness, and color, and joy!

ALICE: Yeah.

Yeah.

KATE: What is the commonality among all the paintings in this particular part of the museum?

ALICE: So, the commonality is the uncommonality.

If you really look down the wall, you see everybody from a fracker in North Dakota...Johnny, to George, our first president.

And if you look at the wall over here, this is one of my favorite, favorite pieces.

This is an artist named Nari Ward, and it is the script that begins the Constitution, "We the People."

It's every size, shape, and color of shoelace in the world, which is kind of who we are as a country.

KATE: So often, when you go into an art museum, you feel separate from the art, right, as if it was another date and time which it was, but you don't necessarily see yourself in it.

And I feel like by putting these contemporary pieces next to these historical pieces, it's almost like you can see the correlation of humanity.

ALICE: Yeah.

I mean, it's a surprise.

And so, what happens when you're surprised, you open up to what's going on, right?

KATE: Yes.

KATE: Designed in collaboration with renowned architect, Moshe Safdie, the museum interior is deliberately warm and inviting.

ALICE: That was really important to me because most people, still, 50 percent of all the people that come today have never been to a museum before.

KATE: Fifty percent have never been in a museum?

ALICE: It used to be 85 percent when we opened.

ALICE: Wow.

ALICE: And I'm proud of that.

I'm proud that we're getting these people here.

And so, I want this to be a welcoming, comfortable, happy place.

KATE: The museum galleries are connected by glass bridges that bring nature inside, offering a moment of pause to really let the art sink in before taking in more.

ALICE: Tell me the story of why you love this one, in particular.

ALICE: Yeah.

Joan Mitchell, who was the only female in the major abstract Expressionist group of the '50s.

This was done in '52, I believe.

It's an untitled painting.

I named it, "Creating Harmony from Chaos."

And I just love the musical aspect to it, and also the energy.

You know, and it looks totally chaotic, and yet it has such harmony.

KATE: Yeah, there's a peace to it.

ALICE: And, you know, I kind of relate it to life.

You know, how do you create harmony from chaos?

And I just love that thought.

KATE: No easy feat creating harmony from chaos.

ALICE: Yeah, we need to keep figuring that out.

KATE: We do.

KATE: Wow, what a delicious high south meal with Alice Walton.

From the biscuits to the pork grits to the squash salad, I will remember this meal for quite some time.

Alice has been one of the richest women in the world most of her adult life.

She's had the privilege and opportunity to follow her passions to the deepest lengths and highest valleys.

And what did she choose?

Art: a portal to the soul.

Alice built a bridge with her museum, one that transports people of all races and abilities for free.

You see, art saved her and inspired her.

It became a trusted friend, and she wants that for others too.

And now, she's trying to create a new bridge, one that helps people get healthier, with her new medical school.

She's trying to revolutionize an industry that often overlooks the impact of mind, body, and spirit.

What will be the impact of this bridge?

We'll just have to wait and see.

KATE: If you would like to know more about the guests, the restaurants, and the inspiring stories of success, please visit ToDineForTV.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram @ToDineForTV.

We also have a podcast.

To Dine For , The Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... (Music and chatter) MAN: During the weekends, we do like a grill.

(Clatter of chess board) MAN #2: You know you have bragging rights in the hood.

I'm like, "My guy won the game."

(Clatter of chess piece and men yelling and cheering) FEMALE ANNOUNCER: At American National, we honor the "do"-ers and the dreamers: The people who gets things done and keep the world moving.

Our local agents are honored to serve your community, because it's their community, too.

American National.