|
April 25, 2008
Celebrating Jewish heritage
New San Francisco museum is engaging, both inside and out.
ARASH BEN SHAUL
The Contemporary Jewish Museum of San Francisco is moving into a new and permanent home this year. The $47 million building, located in the heart of San Francisco, will open its doors to public in June, with a diverse roster of exhibitions planned for audiences of all ages and backgrounds.
Founded in 1984, the Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) has held more than 80 exhibitions, ranging from live music, film, lectures and conversations, to showings of paintings, sculptures and other objects from around the world. The CJM's mandate is to explore the full spectrum of Jewish life, culture and history, which spans more than five continents and thousands of years.
"That's exactly what I found so remarkable," said Daniel Libeskind, the Jewish American architect who designed the museum's new building. "I've dealt with Jewish museums in Europe, where you are always part of an immense tragedy. I thought it was remarkable to work in San Francisco on a Jewish museum that is a celebration of Jewish life."
Libeskind is famous for designing landmarks such as the Jewish Museum in Berlin, the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and the Wohl Centre in Tel Aviv, but he achieved a new level of prominence in 2003, when he won the competition to design and rebuild the World Trade Centre site in New York.
"If you really go into the biblical texts, you see how important architecture and art is for Jews from the beginning," said Libeskind, referring to the precise instructions God gives Jews in the Book of Kings on how to construct the Ark of the Covenant. He added that Jewish architecture "is not about veneration of an image" but about communicating "through the weight of a building."
The structure that will house the museum has taken more than 10 years in planning and construction. The site, which was previously the Jessie Street Power Substation and already an historical site, was offered to the Contemporary Jewish Museum as a permanent home in 1994. The CJM decided to add an extension before moving in and the work was only recently completed.
Since the purpose of the museum is to show the freshness and vitality of Jewish culture and history, the new building is designed to physically capture the spirit of that message. The building represents the Hebrew phrase l'chaim (to life); seen from the front, the exterior resembles the letters of chet and yud.
To further reinforce CJM's guiding principle, the "skin" (exterior) of the extension consists of more than 3,000 luminous blue steel panels specifically made for the museum. The blue color of the steel, achieved through a procedure called interface-coating, contains no dyes or pigments. As a result, the color will never fade or chalk. Furthermore, the panels soften and diffuse the reflection of light and appear to change color, depending on the time of the day, the weather or the viewer's position, thus "creating a dynamic, 'living' space," according to Libeskind.
The museum hopes that visitors will come, not just for the works it displays, but also for the sheer distinction of the architecture. "The building, rooted in the Jewish imagination, opens itself to the diverse contemporary currents of life," said Libeskind.
The first exhibition planned for the grand opening in June is titled In the Beginning: Artists Respond to Genesis. On display will be artworks that span from Roman-era mosaics and Renaissance-era paintings to 20th-century abstract and figurative works - all depicting or responding to the biblical story of creation. Contemporary scientific viewpoints about the origins of the universe and creation stories from other cultures will also be represented.
"We look forward to opening our doors and to welcoming visitors to the Contemporary Jewish Museum in June," said Connie Wolf, CJM's director and chief executive officer. "Our inaugural programs and exhibitions and our beautiful new home, designed with such passion by Daniel Libeskind, will draw together people, art and ideas to engage with Jewish culture in new and exciting ways."
The Contemporary Jewish Museum will open to the public on Sunday, June 8.
Arash Ben Shaul is a Vancouver freelance writer.
^TOP
|
