Beyond Belief: 100 Years of the Spiritual in Modern Art

Co-organized by the Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), Beyond Belief: 100 Years of the Spiritual in Modern Art is an expansive exhibition conceived as a journey into the connections between spirituality and modern and contemporary art. Spanning the years from 1911 to 2011, the exhibition features more than sixty works on loan to the CJM from SFMOMA’s internationally acclaimed collection—ranging from popular favorites to some that have not been seen by the public for many years—and includes paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, video, and installation. The artists represent a wide variety of cultural backgrounds and interests: early twentieth-century visionaries such as Paul Klee and Piet Mondrian; such mid-century innovators as Alberto Giacometti, Philip Guston, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko; leading postwar artists including Bruce Conner, Brice Marden, Agnes Martin, and Nam June Paik; and a diverse group of contemporary artists, among them Teresita Fernández, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Shahzia Sikander, Kiki Smith, and Zarina.