Core Exhibition Renewal | Skirball Cultural Center

Request for Expression of Interest from Creative Exhibition Partners

About the Skirball

The Skirball Cultural Center is a place of meeting guided by the Jewish tradition of welcoming the stranger and inspired by the American democratic ideals of freedom and equality. We welcome people of all communities and generations to participate in cultural experiences that celebrate discovery and hope, foster human connections, and call upon us to help build a more just society.

We present Jewish stories as American experiences to build a sense of shared humanity and strengthen a society where diverse views can be shared respectfully. We emphasize the connections between Jewish identities and other American immigration and civil rights experiences to a diverse and representative audience.

Project Overview

The Skirball Cultural Center’s core exhibition, Visions and Values: Jewish Life from Antiquity to America, opened in 1996. As the institution approaches its 30th anniversary, the board and staff leadership have identified the re-visioning of this central narrative on Jewish American experience as its key priority and opportunity.

The new 14,000 square foot core exhibition will distinguish the Skirball by:

Presenting a broadly relevant and compelling narrative on the Jewish American experience that celebrates the unique history of Los Angeles’ Jewish people and the full diversity of American Jewry’s cultural influences and traditions.
Creating identity and emotional connections within and among visitors.
Building greater understanding and sense of belonging.
Exploring “big hard questions” on a human scale with multiple perspectives.

Opening in spring 2029, a re-envisioned core exhibition will grow and expand audience reach and engage visitors more deeply with the Skirball’s Jewish roots. Priority design audiences for the core reflect a focus on diversification and community impact. The primary audience is younger than the current average visitor—in their “Age of Becoming” (15–25 years old). Secondary audiences include individuals 65+; grandparents, and members of the Jewish community—especially people who may not see their histories and stories reflected in existing Jewish content, including those with limited knowledge of Jewish culture, history, or religion; those in non-Ashkenazi ancestral groups (such as Sephardic and Yemenite); and those adjacent to Jewish people through family or community connections. We assume that the majority of people in these groups will reside in Los Angeles or Southern California more broadly; while we welcome tourists, we do not see them as a primary or secondary audience.

Selection Process: Exhibition Interpretive, Creative, Design, and Production Team

The Skirball seeks to partner with a comprehensive team of exhibition professionals to develop, design, and produce the new core exhibition experience. The team will be expected to lead a process to understand the interests, desires, and behavior of priority audiences, create an interpretive plan that connects with both the Skirball’s mission and the interests of its priority audiences; generate a unique exhibition concept that applies those learnings, shares ideas, and captivates with a leading-edge experiential design.

The team would then bring the concept to reality through exhibition design; research and content development; review of Skirball’s collections, and development of an exhibition display that includes desired acquisitions to further the interpretive vision; identification of impactful and illustrative artistic commissions; creation of multi-media treatments, films, interactives, and other digital content; and production/fabrication that culminates with installation on-site at the Skirball.

For efficiency of schedule, project management, and contracting, the Skirball seeks to select a comprehensive team with one firm serving as the prime vendor. We have articulated a three-phase selection process to do so:

I. Expression of Interest: Creative firms who would lead the concept development process provide a concise submittal. (December 2024–January 2025)

II. Request for Qualifications: Teams would form with invited creative firms and share materials to demonstrate expertise and ability to deliver this project. (February–March 2025)

III. Request for Proposals: Through work sessions and conversation, finalists would arrive at a proposed process, schedule, budget, and contract for the project. A stipend will be provided during this phase. (April–June 2025)

We expect to have the selected firm engaged no later than June 30, 2025, and host kick-off meetings on-site at the Skirball in July 2025. Significant work is to be completed by the Skirball’s 30th anniversary events and a public announcement of the project in spring 2026.

Expression of Interest: Deliverables

Firms interested in providing creative leadership and direction for the new core exhibition shall submit the following materials no later than 5:00 pm PST on Friday, February 7, 2025:

Firm Registration Webform—By providing your firm details, contact information, and acknowledging a confidentiality agreement, you will be provided with additional project materials and submittal instructions.
Expression of Interest—Two-page or two-minute media response to:
- Why are you the right partner for the Skirball?
- What is your creative process and approach to visitor experience development?

All submissions must be submitted in a digital format via submission webform. Any hard copy or mailed materials will not be reviewed and considered.

Any Questions?

Questions are to be submitted via webform by firms who have already registered. Responses will be shared with all registered firms periodically, with the last questions to be submitted no later than January 31, 2025, at 5:00 pm PST.

We are committed to providing equitable access and consideration to all interested firms. To support us in this effort, we request that all communications be submitted via the webform above. Inquiries to Skirball staff members and stakeholders will be directed to the webform and not responded to directly.

Evaluation and Next Steps

Firms will be assessed on how their interest and approach align with the Skirball’s project goals and vision. Results of the Expression of Interest round will be shared no later than mid-February and the Request for Qualifications will be circulated to invited participants.

The selection of the award recipients will be based on our sole determination of the most responsive proposals. We reserve the right to modify or cancel (in whole or in part) this selection process at any time prior to awarding the contract. We reserve the right to reject any and all non-responsive bids submitted, as well as to waive informalities or irregularities in any bids received.