In June 2016, a group of Saudi artists, both men and women, 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 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, before traveling to the Gonzo Gallery in Aspen, CO; Minnesota Street Project in San Francisco, CA; Bates College Museum of Art in Lewiston, ME; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), CA; the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, MI; the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art in Salt Lake City, UT; the Art Museum of the University of Memphis & Memphis Brooks Museum of Art in Memphis, TN; the Corcoran School of Art & Design at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.; –and 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, to encourage people–to– people, community–to–community, and even nation–to–nation dialogue through cultural encounters and exchange, is celebrated in this publication.