Seattle Art Museum: Bridging Cultures

Seattle Art Museum (SAM) will re-open with a 70% increase in gallery space, offering a stellar gathering place for visitors and a site for major installations by international contemporary artists. SAM's third and fourth floors now join the new North Building galleries to the existing South Building galleries and create a worthy setting for the museum's varied collection of art. While planning the new installation, the curators established three principles for using the collection's diversity to its utmost benefit: show the best of SAM's collection; address the cultural context of the works of art; and when possible, create bridges between cultures and time periods. The guide highlights the many different ways in which the museum's permanent collection may now be experienced, with details and insights of selected artworks. The Forum installation leads the way to the spacious Modern and Contemporary galleries. American art from the 18th to 19th centuries has been intentionally sited adjacent to the