Lucid Dreaming at The Modern

Photo: Jens Henrik Daugaard
©Jonah Freeman + Justin Lowe

There’s arguably nothing trippier than a lucid dream. While the idea of being consciously aware that one is dreaming doesn’t seem farfetched, a lucid dream is exceedingly rare for most people. Only half of Americans have ever experienced one, according to Science Direct. 

Metacognition may or may not have been the aim of artist duo Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe’s current exhibition at The Modern. No background knowledge — or art reviews for that matter — is needed to thoroughly enjoy the show that runs through early January, but it’s kinda fun to dig into the backstory. 

The setting is San San, the fictional conjoining of San Francisco and San Diego postulated in 1967. North Texans are similarly waiting for Fort Worth and Dallas to consume Arlington to become FDW. 

Leave your pretentious at the doors and step through the chopped-up drywall entrance. There are spliced wires galore in the dingy, dirty space that harks to my fuzzy recollections of the ‘80s, albeit with a strong tinge of futurism. SUNSET CORRIDOR is far from comforting. It admittedly leans on its production value to awe and entertain, but there’s much to dig into, especially when it comes to our collective understanding, lucid or otherwise, of how the intersection of culture, technology, and art sometimes does and sometimes doesn’t further our metacognition.

SUNSET CORRIDOR runs thru Jan 5, 2025, at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.