Contemporary Jewish Museum

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The Contemporary Jewish Museum was founded in 1984 in San Francisco, California and presents exhibitions that explore contemporary perspectives on Jewish culture, history, art and ideas. In late Spring 2008, the Museum will open a new facility designed by international architect, Daniel Libeskind, and will be located in the Yerba Buena Gardens cultural district located in downtown San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood.

1 History
2 New Building
- 2.1 Daniel Libeskind’s Design
- 2.2 Jessie Street Power Substation
3 Exhibitions
4 Public Educational Programming
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] History

Since its founding in 1984, the Contemporary Jewish Museum has presented over 100 exhibitions and programs on Jewish culture, art, history, and ideas to audiences of all ages and backgrounds. For more than twenty years, the CJM has provided a forum for people of all ages and backgrounds to gather and share multiple perspectives, fostering cross-cultural understanding through dialogue and engagement with art. The CJM is a private, not-for-profit institution supported by members, foundation support and admission revenues.

In 1990, the CJM, originally located at 121 Steuart Street in San Francisco, recognized the need for a more expansive facility to meet the growing interests of the local community. To accommodate an expanded array of programming that includes art, music, film, lectures, discussions and educational activities, the CJM is building a new home in the historic Jessie Street Power Substation. Originally designed in 1907 by Willis Polk, the building is located at 736 Mission Street in the heart of San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Gardens cultural district located in the South of Market (SoMa) neighborhood. In 1998, the CJM selected internationally renowned architect Daniel Libeskind to design the 63,000-square-foot Museum, which is an adaptive reuse of the landmark structure. This is his first Museum project on the West Coast.

[edit] New Building

[edit] Daniel Libeskind’s Design

Contemporary Jewish Museum in April 2008

In 1998, the CJM selected internationally renowned architect Daniel Libeskind to design the 63,000-square-foot Museum, which is an adaptive reuse of a San Francisco landmark structure. This is his first Museum project on the West Coast.

The building will feature the unique shapes and spatial concepts that have earned Mr. Libeskind his worldwide acclaim and will make visible the relationship between the new and the old. The design preserves the character defining features of Willis Polk’s 1907 landmark structure, including the brick southern façade, trusses, and skylights and open space. It will also make this distinctive San Francisco building accessible to the public for the first time in its nearly 100-year history.

Characteristic of Mr. Libeskind’s designs for Jewish organizations, the extension to the original structure is resonant with Jewish ideas. Inspired by the phrase “L’Chaim,” meaning “To Life,” Libeskind utilized the two Hebrew letters of “chai,” the “chet” and the “yud,” to create the form of the building. From the outside of the building, the addition will be most remarkable for its unique shape, as well as its skin: a vibrant blue metallic steel.

According to Libeskind:

“The design for the Contemporary Jewish Museum provides a dynamic space for exhibitions, education, and public gatherings and a symbol dedicated to the revitalization of Jewish life in San Francisco and beyond. The building, rooted in the Jewish imagination, opens itself to the diverse contemporary currents of life and makes a fundamental contribution to the renaissance of the Yerba Buena Gardens cultural district. The challenge, significance and potential of this site and the program of the Museum are themselves part of the cultural process symbolizing the foundation of a new and innovative Jewish institution in San Francisco — an institution that will deal with continuity and identity.”

The new building will also have events spaces, an auditorium, a café, and a store.

[edit] Jessie Street Power Substation

The Museum’s reopening will also mark the first time that the public will be able to venture inside the landmark Jessie Street Power Substation. Designed by architect Willis Polk in 1907, the Jessie Street Power Substation was integral in restoring power and life to the city after it was ravaged by the 1906 earthquake and fires. Libeskind’s design preserves many of the building’s character defining features such as its façade, skylights, catwalk, and trusses and revives the landmark by transforming it into a striking contemporary space clad in vibrant blue steel panels.

[edit] Exhibitions

The new facility will allow the CJM to expand its exhibitions and programming to include presentations of art, music, film, lectures, conversations, and other live performances. The CJM will also host exhibitions that bring together extraordinary art and objects from renowned cultural institutions from around the world.

[edit] Public Educational Programming

At the heart of the new facility is an education center where people of all ages can engage with art and ideas through hands-on educational activities. In addition to hosting three exhibitions annually, CJM administers a full spectrum of educational activities, both stand alone and in conjunction with exhibitions, including lectures, panel discussions, artist talks, film screenings, cooking classes, and public dialogues.

The CJM, in collaboration with the Bureau of Jewish Education, offers a Museum Teaching Fellows Program. This innovative professional development program spans 18 months and offers educators the opportunity to learn how to use artwork and museums as resources for enriching their teaching practices. Participating teachers learn museum methods for facilitating discussions that invite creativity and critical thinking, for using art and objects to spark student interest and for presenting multiple perspectives when teaching about Jewish ideas and traditions. Over the course of the program, fellows participate in group workshops, create arts-based curricula, and bring students for interactive tours of exhibitions at the CJM.