Skirball Cultural Center

Every year, the Skirball commissions an artist to create a community sukkah, inviting people of all communities and generations to relax, reflect, and celebrate the Jewish fall harvest festival of Sukkot at the Skirball. 

This year's sukkah, by multidisciplinary artist Jonathan York, combines a monumental burnt wood sculpture with a living garden of more than 200 plants, symbolizing renewal and rebirth after a tumultuous year of conflict. Enhancing the visual experience of moving through the sukkah is a multi-channel soundscape recorded by York in Israel during the Israel-Hamas War, designed to transport visitors to Israel's forests, streams, deserts, and beaches. 

"Building a yearly sukkah with my grandfather was the highlight of my childhood. For the past six years, I have honored the holiday and his legacy by creating large-scale artworks that explore the sukkah as a medium—each installation, meticulously researched, and uniquely conceived." – Artist Jonathan York

Force Majeure is the sixth iteration of The Sukkah Project, an ongoing exploration by the artist of the sukkah as a medium. Force majeure is a legal term derived from the French phrase for “superior force,” describing unexpected and disruptive events that nullify a contract. In contemplating the October 7 attack on Israel and its aftermath, York, a lawyer by day, ponders what is the 'force majeure'? Acts of terror? War? Or the resilience of nature, which continues to bloom? 

The sukkah will activate all of the senses—beginning with the sight of 6,000 pounds of wood, hand burned by the artist. The sukkah also includes wood recovered by York from destroyed homes in Kibbutz Beeri. From various corners of the exhibition space, visitors will be enveloped by the sounds of nature—the waters of the Jordan River, honeybees of Galilee, and the wind of Negev. 

Force Majeure promises to be a place of community gathering, education, and re-connection to nature after a year of trial and turbulence. 

Read the Artist's Statement to learn more about The Sukkah Project.

Headed to Noah's Ark at the Skirball? Discover a second sukkah outdoors on the south side of our plant-filled campus (near the Family Art Studio).

Jonathan York is a multihyphenate—an artist, lawyer, speaker and filmmaker. By day, York operates a Los Angeles-based private investment firm. By night, York is a multidisciplinary artist who has worked across photography, film, and installation art. His large-scale installation works merge architecture with the fine arts, often serving as a medium for Jewish community and interactivity. 

York’s series, The Sukkah Project, is a six-year exploration of the sukkah as an artistic medium, melding tradition with contemporary themes. Drawing on diverse sources of Jewish meaning, including the seventy-two names of God from Kabbalah, the Mishkan, and the Talmudic seven realms of heavens, York reimagines the sukkah each year, fostering deep connections between history, environment, and the present day. The project's latest iteration, Force Majeure, on view this fall at the Skirball Cultural Center, is York’s first museum presentation.

The artist would like to thank Jewish Federation Los Angeles, Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, and Alice and Nahum Lainer for their generous support. Additional support was provided by the National Library of Israel, Bobco Metals, and Green Valley Growers. 

Sukkot is a joyous Jewish holiday celebrated for seven (or eight) days in the fall, starting on the 15th of the Hebrew month of Tishrei. It commemorates both the historical journey of the Israelites through the desert after their exodus from Egypt, where they lived in temporary shelters called sukkot, and the bountiful fall harvest. Today, many families build and decorate their own sukkah, a charming temporary hut with a roof made of branches, where they share meals, stories, and even sleep under the stars, symbolizing the transient dwellings of their ancestors. A central theme of Sukkot is the welcoming of guests, or ushpizin, into the sukkah, reflecting a spirit of hospitality and community. The holiday is also marked by the waving of the lulav (palm frond) and etrog (citron) along with myrtle and willow branches, in a ritual that celebrates nature’s abundance and the interconnectedness of life. The festive atmosphere includes singing, dancing, and expressing gratitude for both historical and present-day blessings. 

Many Jewish people set up a sukkah and invite friends and family to celebrate the holiday in their own homes or synagogues during Sukkot. For this reason, the Skirball sukkah will be on view for an extended period—from October 8–November 3—so that all community members have an opportunity to eat, reflect, and enjoy the Skirball’s harvest celebration.