The third stop on the world tour of the ground-breaking interfaith East-West contemporary art exhibition, THE BRIDGE, opened on June 1, 2015 in London, England at St. Martin-in-the-Fields on Trafalgar Square.

 

The official VIP opening was held on June 8, 2015, with The Archbishop of Canterbury (The Most Revd & Rt Hon The Lord Justin Welby) giving an opening address on the role of art in bridging faiths and cultures.  Other guest speakers at the official VIP opening included: His Excellency Nasser Kamel, (Ambassador of Egypt to the UK), Archbishop Mouneer H. Anis (Archbishop of Jerusalem and the Middle East for the Anglican Church), Rev. Canon Paul-Gordon Chandler (President/Founder of CARAVAN), Rev. Dr. Sam Wells (Vicar of St. Martin in the Fields), Mr. Ahmed Badrawi (former Managing Director of SODIC, the founding sponsor of The Bridge) and Ms. Carelle Homsy (participating artist).

 

Additionally, Sami Yusuf, the celebrated Muslim singer/songwriter performed “The Gift of Love,” a song commissioned by the UN World Interfaith Harmony Week.  Other special guests included Sheik Mohey El Din Afifi from Al Azhar in Cairo, Egypt and Fr. Shenouda, representing Pope Tawadros of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt.