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In June 2016, a tight–knit group of Saudi artists acted upon a dream to discover the people and diversity of America and to share not only their innate passion to create but also to collaborate with the communities they encountered.
The tour began in Texas with a large scale exhibition at the Station Museum of Contemporary Art in Houston, TX, and ends with Ahmed Mater's 'Mecca Journeys' opening at the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
It is no exaggeration to state that the Bridges Tour has been one of the most significant Cultural Diplomacy initiatives ever undertaken between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States. Over two years, and working in partnership with cultural institutions across the U.S., Bridges attracted an estimated 430,000+ visitors to exhibitions and events across 10 cities and 13 States. Its mission being to encourage people–to–people, community–to–community, and even nation–to–nation dialogue through cultural encounters and exchange.
In June 2016, a group of Saudi artists acted upon a dream to discover the people and diversity of America—from the East to West coast–trekking across the US interstate highway system and major cities on a mission to collaborate with the communities they encountered.
Mecca Journeys was Ahmed Mater's first major solo exhibition in New York, presents a compelling portrait of the massive urban redevelopment now under way in the holiest city in the Islamic world, and its effects on residents and the millions of hajj pilgrims who travel there every year.
Desert to Delta at the Art Museum of the University of Memphis (AMUM) presents 20 artists and a video artist collective from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Pause was Abdulnasser Gharem's first major solo exhibition in the United States, presenting a remarkable body of work born in the aftermath of the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
Examining the parallels between spiritual and urban cultures in Saudi Arabia and Utah; and especially the symbolism of creativity that connects cities of pilgrimage in both places.
A group of young Saudi artists exhibit their work for the first time in San Francisco, California, at the Minnesota Street Project.
A group of young Saudi artists travel to the heart of Hunter S. Thompson's America: Aspen, Colorado. There they present their work at the Gonzo Gallery to an astonished crowd not familiar with Middle Eastern art.
A group of Saudi artists visit Lewiston, Maine, to exhibit their artwork at Bates College, where students get a chance to see the art coming from the Middle East first-hand.
Arriving in the lone star state of Texas, a group of Saudi artists present radical new work at the Station Museum of Contemporary Art in Houston.
A group of Saudi artists visit Dearborn, Michigan, to exhibit their artwork at The Arab American Museum, where locals get a chance to see tart coming from the Middle East first-hand.
Installation view of Cities of Conviction at UMOCA
Participant of Ahaad Alamoudi's performance piece at GENERA#IONS in San Francisco
Nugamshi's live painting at the reception of Epicenter X in Dearborn, Michigan
Marwah Almugait and Qamar Abdulmalik in conversation during Epicenter X
Installation view of Desert to Delta at the Art Museum of the University of Memphis
Billboard in downtown Los Angeles for Abdulnasser Gharem: Pause
Shaweesh, Abdulnasser Gharem, and Ajlan Gharem in discussion at Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Installation view of Parallel Kingdom at the Station Museum, Houston, Texas
Artworks by Rashed Al Shashai and Sarah Abu Adullah on display during the Bridges Tour
Installation view of Ahmed Mater: Mecca Journeys at the Brooklyn Museum
Panel discussion for Desert to Delta at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Tennessee
