The Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) in San Francisco kicked off its latest exhibition, Awakening Futures, on May 6, 2025, bringing together an impressive array of contemporary artists whose works challenge traditional narratives about identity, community, and the future. The exhibition is part of the museum’s ongoing commitment to showcase how modern art can serve as a lens to explore pressing cultural and social issues.
Curated by Renée Marcus, the exhibition features 15 multidisciplinary artists, many from the Bay Area, whose works highlight themes of renewal and possibility. The exhibition combines painting, sculpture, video art, and installations, inviting visitors to question how they imagine the future of both society and the environment.
Among the highlights of the exhibition was a mixed-media installation by San Francisco-based artist Lior Mendelson. His work, Echoes of Tomorrow, features large-scale sculptures made from repurposed materials, including discarded technology and industrial parts. Mendelson’s work speaks to themes of environmentalism and the transience of human-made objects. Visitors were invited to interact with the pieces, creating an immersive experience that emphasized the ongoing impact of humanity’s choices on the planet.
Another standout was Diaspora Dreams, an interactive video art piece by acclaimed artist Noa Pachter, also based in the Bay Area. The work explores the notion of cultural migration, drawing on Pachter’s own experiences as an immigrant. Her piece utilized virtual reality to immerse the audience in a digital landscape that shifts between historical moments of displacement and imagined futures where these movements of people have led to new, hybrid cultures.
Key figures involved in the exhibition included the museum’s Executive Director, Susan Adler, who expressed her excitement about the show in her opening speech: “Awakening Futures is a celebration of the potential of art to create dialogue and inspire change. In the face of uncertainty, it is through creativity that we begin to envision better, more inclusive futures.”
Also present at the opening night were several city officials, including San Francisco Mayor London Breed, who emphasized the importance of supporting the arts as a means of fostering civic engagement and social innovation. “San Francisco’s art community is one of our greatest assets, and exhibitions like Awakening Futures show how art can be a powerful catalyst for reflection and transformation,” Breed remarked.
The Awakening Futures exhibition will be open to the public until July 31, 2025, and offers an unparalleled glimpse into how artists are shaping the future through their creative practices.
