Most exhibitions ask you to look at the past or appreciate the present.

Reverse Futures asks a different question.

What if understanding the future begins with looking at history differently?

Now showing at the Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation (JCAF) in Forest Town, Reverse Futures is a thought-provoking exhibition that blends contemporary art, architecture, design and research to explore how our past continues to influence the world we're building. Rather than offering predictions about tomorrow, it encourages visitors to think about the choices we make today and the stories we tell about where we're heading.

More Than an Art Exhibition

Even if you don't usually visit contemporary art galleries, Reverse Futures offers something different.

The exhibition brings together artists, architects and researchers from across the Global South to explore themes including technology, migration, Indigenous knowledge, memory and the lasting effects of colonialism. Their work asks how these experiences continue to shape our understanding of the future.

The title comes from the idea of "reverse futurism," developed by the Nairobi-based architectural practice Cave_bureau. The concept suggests that creating a better future requires acknowledging and addressing the unfinished work of the past. Rather than forgetting history, it argues that healing and progress begin by understanding it.

A Journey Through Ideas

Visitors will encounter a wide variety of installations, artworks and multimedia pieces that encourage reflection rather than provide simple answers.

Featured contributors include internationally recognised names such as Yinka Shonibare, Ernest Mancoba, Etel Adnan, Kate Crawford and Vladan Joler, alongside South African artists including Traci Kwaai and Georgia Munnik. Special projects by Wolff Architects and Rebecca Potterton add another dimension to the exhibition's exploration of place, identity and the built environment.

Rather than following a traditional narrative, the exhibition invites visitors to move between different perspectives and consider how creativity, research and lived experience can help us imagine new possibilities.

The Final Chapter of a Three-Year Journey

Reverse Futures is the third and final exhibition in JCAF's Worldmaking trilogy.

The series began with Ecospheres in 2024, which explored humanity's relationship with the natural world. It continued with Structures in 2025, focusing on architecture and the spaces we inhabit. Reverse Futures brings these ideas together by examining how technology, culture and history influence the futures we create.

You don't need to have seen the previous exhibitions to appreciate this one. It stands on its own while providing a fitting conclusion to the broader series.

Before You Go

Dates: 26 June to 5 December 2026

Venue: Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation (JCAF), Forest Town, Johannesburg

Admission: Free

Booking: Advance booking is required

Parking: Secure parking is available

Photography: Photography is encouraged throughout the exhibition.

The Bottom Line

Some exhibitions are about admiring beautiful works of art.

Reverse Futures is about asking thoughtful questions.

It challenges visitors to consider how the past continues to shape the present, how technology influences society and how different voices can help us imagine better futures.

Whether you leave inspired, challenged or simply curious, you'll almost certainly leave with something to think about long after you've stepped outside the gallery.